.50 cal Coasties vs. Drug Runners

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Just wondering why the cartels (with all the billions at stake) haven'r bought a REAL sub yet.

They have tried:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/russiagov/stories/mafia092997.htm

Also does anyone else from Miami remember when that guy shot four cops with his AK last year and every LEO in the state was looking for him? I could have sworn I saw a coast guard sting ray (exterior tail rotor, not enclosed like the dolphins) going around South Miami looking for the guy. There was a customs blackhawk too, do they come with door gunners?

As for the fiberglass turtles the Cartels are using, I think the bow of a coast guard cutter would handle them quite nicely. Perhaps that is why they are called "cutters." :D
 
Ok, clear up my ignorance on this flag thing. If the ship is registered to say Panama, or some other country, and it is flying a flag the USCG can't shoot?

How expensive are flags anyway. Can't they just buy a cheap one and put it on and get by at least one hurdle to running in the open water? From a helo they can probably not see the registration or name, just the flag.
 
Acera,

These aren't ships that are being shot at, they are smaller open boats, normally with outboards. If we wanted to stop a Panamanian ship there are much easier ways than shooting with small arms from a helicopter. If a Panamanian ship needed to be stopped with disabling fire we would have to go through the State Department and obtain an SNO, and then go ahead with the disabling fire. I can't vouch for how easy that is but it has been done before.

When talking about a vessel being "flagged" I am actually referring to the vessel being registered in a country. Just buying a countries flag, such as Panama, and flying it from the stern will not suffice.
 
All that expense, all that manpower, to deal with a problem that could more easily be impacted by legalization and taxation.

Actually, the taxation thing was already tried. I cannot provide a citation for this, and I forget if it was a state or federal thing, but they (whomever "they" was - local, state, federal) started going after drug trafficers on tax fraud, failure to declare income, payroll problems, sales tax, etc., something like that.

Tried the old Al Capone bit.

Apparantly the courts were getting more and more picky on what was a legit drug bust, so they got em on drugs and varying forms of tax fraud.

Q
 
One evening at dusk, it stuck me aboard what may be the fastest boat in the country — a 1,000-horsepower go-fast with a full tank of gas and a top speed of 70 mph

Anemic. There's bass boats that do 70.
People are so easily inpressed when hanging around government stooges and tax payer supplied toys.
 
Of course there are bass boats that do 70. On absolutely flat water. We're talking about boats that will do 70 in a 5' chop and still be pretty comfortable.

Then again I'm just one of those government stooges :rolleyes:
 
dm1333, I understand what size the ships/boats are. I live on the gulf coast and have frequently spent time on Donzi's, Fountains, and on one lucky day a poker run in a 42' Cigarette that was worth a little over $250,000. Guess what they were all registered under the U.S. Flag. Does this mean that the coasties could have shot us if we had resisted? According to the article, no. These are the kind of boats, and one I rode on a little suspect, that the cowboys use to run their junk. It seems that trying to be politically correct may hamper their efforts.
 
Acera,

The boats you spent time on are not the kind of boat drug runners use. Think of an open hull, 30' or 40' long, packed to the gills with fuel and drugs. Everything else is stripped off and thrown away.

You're question about being shot at is too broad to be answered and I won't even try.
 
A stateless vessel falls under everbodies jurisdiction. This is perfectly legal and has been tested in court nationally and internationally.

ah, that makes sense. I hadnt thought of the idea of them being "stateless".the whole scenario is pretty interesting, to say the least.Thanks
 
Well I'm sure this drug war is gonna be won real soon now.

I case you care and didn't know, much of the abuses we read about happening to gun owners, carriers, and dealers are a result of the drug war and how the courts have deferred to state power and decreased individual liberty due to constant assault in the drug war.

"Legalizing drugs would simultaneously reduce the amount of crime and raise the quality of law enforcement. Can you conceive of any other measure that would accomplish so much to promote law and order?" -Milton Friedman 1971

Also see http://www.fff.org/freedom/0490e.asp
 
dm1333, You might need to check out the types of boats I listed, they are almost exactly what the drug runners use. They the go fasts thats been the choice for many years. Look at the history of the cigarette line of boats. If it is registered, it appears to be disallowed under the strict rules of engagement. dm1333, if you like I could post pictures to educate you. Here is a wiki link for you; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go-fast_boat

The question about being shot at was in the context of the article, I understand if you don't have a background in that area, but thanks for your attempt to understand.
 
I don't know much about boat design but why can't one of these boats have a smaller engine mounted inboard? Wouldn't the CG folks have more problems with shooting out this engine (esp if it was a covered bump)?

The the benefits of having a "limp to shore" V8 motor might be overshadowed by the added weight of the backup engine and added drag of the propellor shaft (although this could be raised and lowered)...

-g

http://lagringasblogicito.blogspot.com/2007/07/another-type-of-harvest-in-la-mosquitia.html
http://www.snopes.com/photos/boats/drugrunner.asp
 
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