U.S. Sea Sherrifs ???!!!???

[Aquah0lic]

Just saw this on the news. Some guy in Portsmouth, VA is trying to recruit people for an armed civilian marine patrol. Coast Guard and Police don't know anything about it.

Just when you thought you've seen it all.

[Pelagic]

Gilligan meets Deputy Sherriff Barney Fife....

[Aquah0lic]

I googled it and he had run an ad on Norfolk's craigslist but it says 'ad pulled by author'.

[Stillraining]

Cool..How big of a gun do I get...

[SilentOption]

This sounds like someone I know looking to establish a para-military anti-piracy force. Could be fun and lucrative unless you happen to get shot. That tends to suck the fun right out of any cool job. If someone is interested in this type of work send me a private message I'll tell you where to send your resume.

[Runner]

Does it pay well???

[Stillraining]

Originally Posted by SilentOption

This sounds like someone I know looking to establish a para-military anti-piracy force. Could be fun and lucrative unless you happen to get shot. That tends to suck the fun right out of any cool job. If someone is interested in this type of work send me a private message I'll tell you where to send your resume.

From the sound of things latly it cant be any riskier then venturing to sea in a sail boat.

[SilentOption]

Originally Posted by Stillraining

From the sound of things latly it cant be any riskier then venturing to sea in a sail boat.

No kidding. There must have been 4 rudders fail between Virgina and Bermuda this week.
And I saw a graphic on known piracy hotspots around the world on the news today. According to that the safest place to cruise is Lake Havasu.

If its not pirates taking your boat its those damn coasties making you get off and abandon it.

Ok now that really was a joke for Runner.

Regarding how well private security work pays that all depends on what you think a lot of money is.

Some guys are making better than 400 a day in Iraq. Some are bringing in much much more.

[Stillraining]

Rudders..Rudders everyware.

Just had my boat re surveyed for the forth time in 16 months ( long story ) ...this 4th time it was noted that my steering cables were to far gone..to loose and chives to wobbly to be safe...

If you want a seaworthy vessel you better go over it with a fine toothed comb yourself...Im starting to think surveys are a waste of money for all but the totaly incompetent and then you need a half dozen to get the full picture.

[Aquah0lic]

I couldn't agree more !!! When my boat was surveyed last week I was pointing out things to the surveyor that I had previously noticed and he was skipping right over. Part way through the survey I stopped doing it to see how many things he would miss. It was ridiculous. My port genoa block has cracks in the sheave that are visible 20' away, yet he sat down right next to it not taking notice so I started tapping it with my foot and he looked right at it and still didn't notice it was broken. AND THEN, to top it all off, there was an old plastic pint bottle of smirinoff in a cabinet with 2 or 3 gulps left in it and the guy grabs it and takes a swig right in front of me and the seller! UNBELIEVABLE!!! I gave him the rest of the bottle as a tip! Hecklinger was his name.

The one good thing I can say is that he took the job on 1 days notice. The surveyor that was suppose to do it, that I had been in contact with the whole previous week miraculously forgot he had ever even talked to me and left me hanging the day before when I called to give him directions. Peter Schact out of Urbana, VA and he came highly reccommended.

The moral of this story is... Don't count on Peter Schact!

[cburger]

Comes back to the old adage "Be responsible for yourself and your vessel". One of the things sailing is supposed to be about is self reliance.

[AnchorageGuy]

Originally Posted by Stillraining

From the sound of things latly it cant be any riskier then venturing to sea in a sail boat.

You know, these kinds of statements usually come from folks that seldom venture far from home and spend way too much time on the internet. Piracy and attacks on cruising boats are extremely rare in the grand scheme although get much discussion when they happen. In 16 years we have indeed seen some petty theft, much of it in the US, and on very rare occasions heard reports of more serious crime. On the other hand, the afternoon news today will be full of murder and mayhem and scares the crap out of me. After a short period I need to get out and go cruising to feel safe again.

[Fixer]

Silent Option,
I could not PM you. Can you please email me at assetprotection at spinfinder dot com? This is something I have been very interested in doing.
Cheers.

[SilentOption]

Fixer,

Just sent you a PM let me know if you got it.

[Amgine]

Once upon a time a very recognized boating periodical posted a letter they had received, after carefully making sure there was no way any reader could contact the author.

The author was looking for crew/partners to join him on an adventure to take a vessel into the eye of a cat 5 hurricane, and then to keep pace with the storm until it made landfall, at which point they'd abandon ship and take whatever shelter they could find available.

The sheer idiocy of such a plot was astonishing, and the editors could not in good conscience provide the author with the opportunity to find like-minded people who would risk their lives so recklessly.

I feel the same way about the idea of a vigilante coast guard.

Did anyone see the stories about the lynchings in Bolivia?