Sorry to interrupt the interesting political discussion but I just found another news update with regard to the pirates aboard the Ukrainian tank transport. The pirates acknowledge that they'll get a relatively modest portion of the $3 million proposed ransom; the lion's share gets ripped off by all the go-betweens: click here for report

There's a great photo of the Somali pirates aboard the MV Faina.

These Somali pirates really have a tough row to hoe.

Charley Noble