US warship in Dublin may have illegal radioactive ammo aboard

by Jim Wed May 19, 2004 12:13

Just one gripe though, surely you should hold the protest where the ship is docked and let those on board take the message home that their country's war machine is not welcome in Ireland.

by John Wed May 19, 2004 13:12

American warships have always been welcome in Ireland. They've been coming here for years, since just after World War 2 in fact.
I do recall back in the 60s and 70s queues a mile long of people waiting to board them to have a look. Some were young men hoping to enlist, but most were young women, looking for a husband. All nice girls love a sailor, remember. In those days the only person who complained about American warships in Dublin was the ArchBishop of Dublin who was fearful that American sailors would bring to Ireland terrible things like sex. I suggest 200 male sailors from this ship and 200 male 'anti-war' activists be invited tonight to the top dance-hall or disco in Dublin. Lets see which group the girls go for. If there are any over-45 female sailors on this ship, I might even invite one of them out to dinner in Dublin tonight. Nothing turns a man on more than the sight of a woman in uniform, especially the American naval uniform. If the CIA or the Irish Special Branch are reading this, perhaps they could pass my email address on to Commander of the ship for distribution among the female sailors on board (only the over 45's, mind you).

by John Wed May 19, 2004 15:47

By the way, I forgot to mention that one of the reasons American navy ships have always been made welcome on visits to Ireland is that it was actually founded by an Irish man. Commodore John Barry, known as 'Father of the American Navy', and also famous as the first man to carry the American Stars and Stripes in battle. He's still honoured to this day by numerous Irish organisations in America and was a supporter of Irish independence around the time of the 1798 rebellion. If I'm not mistaken, he came from Wexford and I do recall in my youth seeing a statute of him somewhere down there, though I can't remember the name of the town he came from. Perhaps Eoin Dubsky could tell us, as he's a Wexford man too. Of course, in those days Wexford produced real men.

by David Wed May 19, 2004 16:02

It's totally irrelevent that an irish person might (or might not) have founded the American Navy

It is also irrelevent that the Navy might have been welcome here in the past.

Many illusions exist about the purpose and role of the American Military machine and now that these illusions are beginning to slip the Irish people have a right to demand that we no longer offer welcome or refuge to these instruments of terror.
Raqueteers for big business

by Ciaron - Dublin Catholic Worker & Pitstop Ploughshares Wed May 19, 2004 16:40 087 918 4552

Press release for vigil on the following link
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=65087

Dublin Catholic Worker invited folks to a 2 hour vigil this morning at the Spire in response to the presence of USS La Salle in port. The timing of the vigil was due to the three members of the live-in community having work commitments in the afternoon/evening.

Signs included "War is Teror is War", "Depleted Uranium Munitions - Not Through Shannon, Not Through Dublin!", "USS La Salle- Depleted.Uranium Death Ship", "Friendships Not Warships - Stop U.S. War on Iraq", USS La Salle Crucifies the Innocent".

Two others of us who gathered are veterans
of a ploughshares action on uranium mining equipment at the Jabiluka mine in the Northern Teritory of Australia. Two of us are awatinging trial for the Pit Stop Ploughshares actions (see www.plowsharesactions.org). Four of us had taken nonviolent actions against U.S. warship visits to Australia & New Zealand and the Faslane nuke sub base in Scotland.

Kiwi Jim reflected "Ireland is the same size as New Zealand. New Zealand made a moral stance in the 1980's to ban all nuclear warship visits, this lead to a U.S. military, economically and diplomatic blacklisting of New Zealand. Although NZ has 40,000,000 more sheep than Ireland - we weren't part of the EU economy (presently containing two large countries who opposed this present US war). NZ had a moral leadership on certain issues in its political elite that Ireland lacks. The politicians here are so corrupt and mediocre. New Zealand made a moral stance on warship[s and survived...there is so much fear in Ireland of the economic consequences of having an independent foreign policy."

We were also joined by Eoin Dubsky who has initiated legal action to arrest the captain of the USS La Salle.

We had a Garda presence throughout the 2 hour vigil. Generally ok but summoned the Council guy when we tied our banner to the new trees near the spire. Passer by response varied from racist and pro-war to curiousity, sympathy and support.

A teacher with a school photography excursion group allowed me to address about 25 school kidz on the issues surrounding the presence of the La Salle, Ireland's complicity in the war on Iraq, the nature of depleted uranium munitions (poisoning Iraqis and US military personel) and the forthcoming Pit Stop Ploughshares trial.

A young Iranian man with a peace sign patch was moved deeply by the witness. One guy came and handed out fruit and another handed ot choclates.

by Southsider Wed May 19, 2004 17:02

Jesus, remeber the excitement when the aircraft carrier USS John F Kennedy moored off Dun Laoghaire. Irish people turned up in droves to visit the ship, watch it from the harbour walls. Not an anti-american protest in sight.
As someone who owes my freedom to the preparedness of successive American administrations to face down the USSR I welcome all visits from their military. If only they could rid us of the provos!

by Ray Wed May 19, 2004 17:06

Actually, there was. Started at the People's Park, as I recall.

by Joe Wed May 19, 2004 17:10

"Demonstration on Tuesday 2nd at 7pm, the Peoples Park, Dun Laoghire" (thats 1996 folks).

Text of the anarchist news we distributed at the link below, with amusing misprint still included.

by David Wed May 19, 2004 17:22

The movie 'Top Gun' did more to spark enthusiasm for the American military than anything real they ever did.

Such powerful propaganda is very difficult to resist especially when the truth was never reported.

by John Wed May 19, 2004 17:59

Kiwi Jim is having you on about NZ. The truth is NZ has been far more supportive of America in Iraq than Ireland has (that's intended as a
compliment to NZ by the way) - this is from the World Socialist web site:

"Australian Prime Minister John Howard has received support from a hitherto unlikely source—New Zealand’s Labour Prime Minister Helen Clark—for his recent comments endorsing pre-emptive military strikes against a terrorist threat in neighbouring countries."

"By giving tacit support to Howard, Clark is letting it be known that New Zealand stands squarely behind Canberra and Washington in any strike against Iraq, whether it has the imprimatur of the UN or not. Her defence of Howard came just two weeks after New Zealand dispatched a naval warship and an Orion reconnaissance aircraft to join the military buildup around Iraq. "

"The NZ frigate Te Kaha joined a Canadian-led task force in the Gulf of Oman, which is charged with intercepting boats suspected of carrying Al Qaeda terrorists. While Clark denied that the Te Kaha would be part of any US action against Iraq, she did state, in response to a parliamentary question, that the Orion and the frigate would remain on duty even if the US attacked Iraq without UN endorsement."

"The same week, the NZ government concretely strengthened its military ties with Washington by granting the US Air Force permission to establish a high frequency radio transmitter for military communications and co-ordination on the South Island."

"While the size of New Zealand’s military contribution may be tiny, its political support for an attack on Iraq is important. By supporting the US in Iraq, Clarke has her eye on a free trade agreement with Washington."

Kiwi Jim, I think I GOTCHA there.

As for the Iranian gentleman, he's probably a refugee from Islamic fascism. There are about 10 million refugees from that unfortunate country in the West. Most of them are praying that America does to the Mad Mullahs what they did to Saddam Hussein.

by cmis Wed May 19, 2004 18:03

"may have illegal radioactive amo"

I may be the queen of England, But Im not. Why do the editors allow fabricated stories like this on Indymedia. My god its a joke.

by Gaillimhed Wed May 19, 2004 18:12

Sure go on 'southsider' and 'john' - go wave your stars and stripes and have a poke around the glory that is a US warship. No ones gonna stop you.

Times change, and today people are better informed, thats why people are against the US administration and its military, why else did you think so? The US military and its machinery represents something much different today than it did a generation or two ago.
And by the way john, US sailors are notoriously undisciplined when unleashed on shore leave, (not all, of course, dont bother me with a rant about generalisations), those good ole days are good-ole gone, shore leave means prostitution, fighting and drunkenness. They'll Love Dublin!!

When i was a kid i thought the US were the good guys, then i learned to read.

US Military War crimes -
http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/printer_7642.shtml

130 years of US military interventions: Note the predominance of third world countries and civilian peasant populations at the wrong end of american 'democracy':
http://www.internationalanswer.org/pdf/usmilitaryinterventions.pdf

by John Wed May 19, 2004 18:13

Just a thought. If by any chance Kiwi Jim has managed to scrounge a free Guinnness or two out of you on the grounds of, and I quote Kiwi Jim, "NZ had a moral leadership on certain issues in its political elite that Ireland lacks", then, after reading my previous comment, you should ask him to pay up. More like con man Jim, if you ask me.

by Ciaron O'Reilly - Dublin Catholic Worker & Pitstop Ploughshares Wed May 19, 2004 20:44 087 918 4552

Anthony Edwards (plays Goose gets killed in Top Gun ) volunteered at the Catholic Worker soup kitchen in L.A. while I was there. Remember him saying Top Gun was part financed by the US Air Force.

I guess the point Kiwi Jim was making is that NZ - a country the size of Ireland (without all the EU support) - made a moral stance against US nuke warship visits, responding to a huge movement that used nonviolent direct action (Auckland Harbour) creatively & effectively. Nukes were criminalised and the NZ conservatives could only get reelected after they reluctantly adopted the anti-nuke legislation. The conservative resigned argument here - that Ireland couldn't survive the flight of US capital in response to a moral anti-war position - is bullshit.

After carrying out a review in the late '90's of their anti-submarine surveillance (and realising they hadn't spotted a sub in 30 years!) the NZ Clark government scrapped it's Orion based anti-sub surveillance and went on to scrap the entire New Zealand Air Force. (NZ fighter pilots fleeing to OZ RAAF and UK RAF).

During the '80's the US Giovernment refused to officially welcome NZ heads of state. NZPM Lange was welcomed to U.S. by Yoko Ono instead! Also the French sent in secret service to bomb the Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior in Auckland Harbour (killing a greenpeace photographer). All sorts of covert pressure was being applied by U.S. & France. NZ (the size of Ireland) largely stood its ground and survived relatively in tact.

That NZPM Clark has deployed NZ SAS to Iraq has been disappointing. In the tradition of the token OZ & Kiwi cannon fodder deployed to Vietnam to internationalise the bodycount and make it look less uniltarel.

That the U.S. is going to lose this war is becoming more obvious with every passing day. U.S. helicopter gunship has just killed 45 wedding guests/Iraqi civilians in the past couple of hours. It took US several years to get into this quality of mess in Vietnam. The Bush neo-cons have fast tracked. The best Ireland can do is to withdraw the use of Shannon - a bit like taking the car keys off a drunk mate who wants to drive home!

The 1000 Irish (600 former N.I. prison guards & 400 former RUC) making a killing in Iraq as mercanaries should be brought home asap - a long with NZ SAS & 900 Aussies! Their presence and deaths are token to market the war on the US domestic front as an international effort.

The USS La Salle is carrying depleted uranium munitions....responsible for a plague of cancers, leukemias and birth deformities in U.S. & Brit Gulf War 1 Vets
and Iraqi folks. Depleted Uranium is a Weapon of Mass Destruction, a cynical way of getting rid of your nuclear waste (they don't charge for it!)....it's the weapon that keeps on killing generation after generation!

by Gobshite Watch Wed May 19, 2004 21:16

Oh John has gone all quiet now. Why? Is it cos the last poster 'GOTCHA'?

ps so Iranians want a US invasion? Like the US/UK intervention in the 1950s that destroyed Iran's democracy and got it into the mess its in today? And i think you'll find (if you bother to look anywhere apart from the Official White House website -unlikely) that aftet the iraq invasion, when the US threatened to intervene in Iran, there was an outpouring of anger from all across the country. The pro-democracy groups all expressed opposition to any interference. Iranians know their history, John, even if you dont.

by pleny petentiary Wed May 19, 2004 21:45

jim larkin on the liffey.

by John Thu May 20, 2004 00:12

No, John hasn't gone all quiet. Unlike many on here, John works for a living - as a result John can't spend all day on this site, entertaining though it would be to do so. Lets get this straight. The contribution of Ireland to the American war effort is to allow American troops to fly through Shannon and to allow American sailors a few days rest and relaxation in Dublin. For this you accuse the Irish government of being war criminals. The New Zealand contribution to the American war effort is to send a frigate, aircraft and SAS-type troops to Iraq. For this you say that the New Zealand government 'displays moral leadership that Ireland lacks'. That was before I pointed out New Zealand's role in this war. You certainly didn't volunteer that information yourself. After I pointed it out, the worst you said about it was that it was 'disappointing'. Such restrained language when talking about New Zealand,
such hysterical language when talking about Ireland. As for the economics, in 1980 GDP per capita in Ireland was 60% that of New Zealand, in 2004 GDP per capita in Ireland is 140% that of New Zealand, largely thanks to American investment. Ireland is infinitely more dependent on Americal investment and American tourism than New Zealand. You may have noted that Intel just announced a one billion euro investment in Dublin today.
Do you seriously believe such investment would occur if Ireland adopted the anti-American line that you advocate? Of course, Ireland could survive economically without American support, but at the same level of prosperity, unemployment and emigration it enjoyed in the 1950s. How many jobs in Ireland are you willing to sacrifice in pursuit of your anti-American vendetta? Could you put a figure on it please? As for the Rainbow Warrior, its getting late and my eyes might be going, but I could swear you wrote that France bombed it. Not America! Would that be the same France thats leading the anti-American pack in Europe over Iraq? As for Iran, anybody can see that the Islamic revolution in that country is on its last legs. A pro-American government is inevitable there in the next few years. The vast majority of Iranian democrats live in America itself, not in Iran. Most of them are praying for America to overthrow the barbarous regime there, so that they can return home.

by Will Thu May 20, 2004 00:42

Yes i can see the scene now as the sergeant in charge of Pearse Street Garda Station reads your letter pleading with him to send his men on to a war ship for uranium that might be there.
Reality of it is that it probably provided a moments entertainment and then down the shredder and rightly so. Why oh why do you waste your time and ours with this crap. Why not try help your local homeless community, help old ladies cross the street or do something anything except this rubbish. Now back to your latte twat boy.

by Ciaron - Dublin Catholic Worker Thu May 20, 2004 03:51

John. Sorry if I didn't make my self clear in the original posting.

Kiwi Jim was refering to the NZ Government of the 1980's that made the initial stand (in response to a mass movement of both opinion and action) to the lack of leadership here (with a majority opinion against Irish involvement in this US/UK war). The French Government that launched the terrorist action was in 1985.

US investment here is private enterprise motivated by profit. As the former Republican Mayor Guliana (sp?) pointed out during his Feb 2003 visit to Ireland, American capital will leave when it's not making a profit not in response to Irish foreign policy He said in effect "you are an independent country you should have an independent foreign policy" (if only!)

Iran was under a steady process of liberal reform until the U.S. military occupied the nations either side of it and put it on the "axis of evil" as the next potential target. This of course (as it always does) plays into the hands of the authoritarians in Iran trying to halt such reform, leads to further militarisation (eg. the draft in Nicaragua during the US financed Contra war of the '80's).

We had the vigil this morning because we have work commitments this afternoon and evening. But never confuse having a "job" with "work". Some jobs - eg. the military industry, the list is endless - are not work! Some work - eg. child raising, the list is endless - are not "jobs. Work is co-creative and nourishing of community. Capitalism abandoned "full employment" in the '70's.

by Ciaron - Dublin Catholic Worker Thu May 20, 2004 08:10

http://www.ericblumrich.com/pl_lo.html

by Eoin Dubsky Thu May 20, 2004 11:15

Yesterday, Wednesday 20 May, at 2pm my letter (posted above) to the Officer in Charge at Pearse Street Garda Station was forwarded by fax to the Super's Officer at Store Street Garda Station. This morning at 10am I was told that Insp. Johnson at that station is looking into the matter and will stay in touch. I'll phone for him just before lunch today, if I haven't heard from him by then.

RTE Network 2 News were supposed to run the story of the USS La Salle last night -- I didn't watch it so I don't know if they did. Someone may need to jumpstart the media into action with a little nvda to capture their imagination, a la St. Patrick's Day Four perhaps (http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=64340)

by he who is leading the anti-YankeeDixie pack across Europe - with the tacit assistance of 28 states. Thu May 20, 2004 13:03

was mined in port by agents of the DGSE acting on the orders of President Meiterrand ostensibly to stop it monitoring nuclear testing by the French State in the Pacific Ocean.
The incident drew worldwide condemnation of France at that time, especially since it resulted in the death of one crewmember.
Greenpeace has long nursed a problematic relationship with the French State, which carried out the most Nuclear Tests in the late period of the XX century.
France has declared that it will not be carrying out any more of these tests. France has changed a little in it's attitude to such things.

Greenpeace is presently facing illegalisation as a terrorist organisation in the USA where it counts on most of its funding.

Greenpeace itself has gone through many changes in the last decade. amidst criticsm that it's operations were more designed to attract attention and teenage subscriptions for soft campaigns that made twee headlines and acted as a salve to western conscience.

Undoubtedly it is still the leading NGO in raising ecological awareness, but many of it's most famous campaign techniques passed along with key activist personel to various "splitter organisations". THere are doubts that it's apolitical approach to issues of ecological sustainability are best suited to the practical development of such politics in South America in the forthcoming century.
It is possible that the Greenpeace has outlived it's usefulness in many ways.

by Eoin Dubsky Thu May 20, 2004 13:29

Speaking to Sgt. Walsh in Store Street Garda Station a few moments ago, I was told that they would not "storm the ship" or investigate the matter even without direction from their superiors. He has agreed to escalate the matter to Garda HQ though, and said that they will get back to me in writing.

He was concerned that it was really a political matter, and not one which the Radiological Protection Act was meant for. I asked him then to seek the advice of the DPP in that case, but he said that it would be better handled at a higher level than his police station ("It's not a local matter" he said).

Please help: If you spot any US Navy folk around town please ask them to confirm what ammo they use, and whether they have any DU aboard. You might also print out a webpage or two from GIrights.org and give it to them in cast they don't already know their rights and options (http://girights.objector.org/gettingout/needtoknow.html).

by Lone gunman Thu May 20, 2004 13:36

done in all fairness in what he belives in.More than likely ended up in the circular floor tray.Or into the "Kooks,Nuts and other misc Loons to be keep an eye on" file.
Yeah right ...I can see the grauds going out to a super carrier in what...a row boat? To examine it for radioactive munitions.
After the entire ships compliment has got over their fit of laughing,and the gaurds find this ammo,[proably after the crew has shown them where it is].What then?Are the gaurds to arrest the entire ship and crew?Confiscate the ammo?All proably of a hundred plus metric tonnes of it?
Clamp the F18s on the deck?Impound the carrier?
That carrier has more destructive power on it than SIX of ourENTIRE little defence force could muster against it. So WHAT EXACTLY does the anti American lobby want the Gaurds to do?Spark off a diplomatic incident?
Sometimes on really has to question the grip of reality the anti American[AKA"peace protestors"] display.

NEWSFLASH!!!!The ship is a NUKE POWERD carrier! So if somthing does happen youwill have a nice bit of real radioactivity in Dublin bay that will put DU munitions in the shade.

by Worth a Try Thu May 20, 2004 17:00

Remember Pinochet under house arrest in London. Realise that Kissinger is looking over his shoulder whenever he travels.. U.S. military in the docks, ge6t use to it. Its going to be a repetitive sight in the period ahead!

by how things look from different angles. Thu May 20, 2004 18:46

was the work of Garzón in Spain.
Aznar's Prosecutor. The man who did the Basque political and cultural illegalisations as part of the campaign to end Terrorism.

It's like how Bertie can seem from different angles. At home he's a shite. Far Far away he can sometimes shine, like an oily puddle, yo know it's dirty but it catches your eye nonetheless.

Anyways, you want to pull a Pinochet stunt, you need lots of help from the other "wings".
The ones you generally say you really don't want in the picture. Pinochet was got to get at Thatcher and for Argentina less so for Chileans.
A geo-political game which sold very well to "the anti-brutal dictator crew" (us). But it wasn't really done for our benefit.
Nothing is ever done for "our" benefit, which is why we remain poor, and marginalised.
If I wasn't marginalised I'd tell you all about it in a big book. But someone else, will sell it to you for years in a sanitised version without the really sticky bits, in fact they already have, and you'll all go on buying it. Myself included.
That's how truth is "fabricated".

by Vlad Fri May 21, 2004 00:35

Ciaron O'Reilly refers to the Catholic Worker live-in community. Tee hee! What, 3 of you share a house? Is that a community these days in the Catholic Workers Movement?

by Ciaron - Dublin Catholic Worker Fri May 21, 2004 09:52

The Catholic Worker is a 71 year old christian-anarchist-pacifist-tradition. It is a movement and it is also specific projects - soup kitchens, houses of hospitality, prison solidarity etc.

Three intentional live ins is pretty average for a CW. Some just one or two intentional live ins. L.ACW. has about 15 live ins. NYCCW roughly the same. There are extended community folks around the houses and guests. Drop by some time we're a load of laughs.

Check website below for community directory of various houses.

by Eoin Dubsky Fri May 21, 2004 10:59

I guess I should have tried them first, but this morning I phoned the RPII and asked them to investigate the ship for radioactive material (DU). Below are links to further reading on the law.

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/ZZA9Y1991.html (Radiological Protection Act, 1991)
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/ZZA9Y1991S29.html (your powers of inspection under the Act)
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/ZZA9Y1991S38.html (Offences relating to nuclear material under the Act)
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Documents/Infcircs/Others/inf274r1.shtml (Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material)

The American warship may also be breaking Irish law relating to the use of the Irish national flag, not only because it's not an Irish ship, but also because it belongs to the armed forces of a belligerent power during a time of war.

by Spitfire Mk III Fri May 21, 2004 12:24

A beligerent warship may stay in a neutral port for up to 72 hours (Hague Convention?) for essential repairs. After this time it must either leave or surrender. Am assuming the rules not changed since WWII when the 'Pocket Battleship' Graf Spee was forced into Montevideo, Uraguay (see link and/or the film 'The Battle of the River Plate')

Of course this is the 'war on terror' so the usual rules probably don't apply.

Re: flying the Irish flag.

I'm sure that's correct, all foreign vessels are expected to fly the tricolour when sailing in Irish waters. It's an acknowledgement of our soverignty.

by Lone gunman Fri May 21, 2004 12:27

in naval and maritime matters.
When a foregin vessel flies a flag of a country it is not registerd to.it is done out of COURTSEY to its host country. It will fly three main flags. Its national flag[Stars&stripes],the host and visiting country[Ireland],and it'shouse flag [whatever fleet it belongs to at the moment].
So nope Dumbsky,it is no sinister plot to hide under our flag.Or some other paranoid plot you might have delusions about.You still havent answerd how the gaurds and RPII are going to do anything about a nuke carrier in Irish waters.
Do tell what your suggestion on this will be ?We could all do with a good laugh.....

by Eoin Dubsky Fri May 21, 2004 19:10

*sigh* Lone Gunman is only trolling once more, but I'll respond to his comment here anyway: My point was not only about the conventions of flying flags as a courtesy (the Mercentile Marine Act, 1955 appears to acknowledge the existence of that tradition), it was about the rights and duties of foreign warships in particular.
I've already explained above what I would like the RPII and the Gardai to do. At this still it's probably too late for the USS La Salle, but this case should help hilight the need for a Nuclear Free Zone Act, similar to New Zealand's in Ireland.

by Lone gunman Sat May 22, 2004 13:48

Oh dear.Eoin is still off in his little world.Sorry for upsetting little Dumbskiums fantasy with cold hard reality.Life sucks,and reality kicks you hard in the arse,it is put down as trolling.
So as far as I understand you idea is as follows;
You want the RPII and the Gardai to go out and inspect a Super carrier,and it's "battle group" which is over the horizon and in international waters
[for those not knowing about this ,a super carrier does not go around the worlds oceans by itself.It is accompanied by at least three destroyers,a missile cruiser,a resupply ship and at least two hunter/killer subs.]

Fist difficulty I see will be getting the RPII and Keystone cops...er Gardai,out there.Do they swim or get a row boat out??Somhow I dont think Dun laoighre harbour is deep enough to handle a 200ktonne carrier,nor would it be inclined to come in here for some petty buffons not getting sea sick or wet.

Whereupon this force of RPII and Gardai arrive on the carrier and find out it is NUKE powered and DOES have at least 100plus tonnes of DU ammo aboard for its close proximity defence guns.Which will be shown to them with no bother.

Then they will do WHAT exactly?????
Come on Eoin fill us in! What are they going to do. ????

Either put up a REALISTIC solution that will work in the REAL world, or shut up about this!

by Lone Gunman Sat May 22, 2004 14:01

RE the time a warship can stay in a neutral port.It is indeed correct 72 hours.BUT it can be extended by request to the neutral countries govt. AND only applies if the ship is engaged in actual combat. IE Graf Spee
[international law of the sea.A long time ago]

Somhow I cant see our Irish navy taking on a carrier battlegroup to "impound" it.
Not without Ireland becoming the 51st State of the US two days later.No great loss.

by de spy in the sky Sat May 22, 2004 20:31

Since when is USS La Salle a nuclear powered supercarrier? The facts have been overlooked by many here I think.
I am also interested to see where this ship uses DU rounds? The only weapon this ship carries as far as I know are its self defence anti aircraft weapons,which theoretically cannot be used for offensive purposes,and definitely not over land,where most of the Gulf War syndrome problems originated.

From what I can remember, the Gulf war syndrome was caused by soldiers inhaling the fumes from burning Tanks that had been hit by DU ammunition. The ship in question will not be sailing that close to tanks,as far as I know. The real issue you have overlooked is this ships place in the Command and Control of the supposed "war agains terror". You have ignored completly the presence of the masterminds of the slaughter and destruction in iraq in Dublin,chosing instead to protest at some minor detail of its weaponry.

I may not agree with your protest,though I do respect it,as I assume you will respect my opinions,but is there any chance you could stick to the facts please?

by Gaillimhed Tue May 25, 2004 16:36

The way you go on, what ...do you think the irish guards would have to storm the ship in order to request an inspection, i mean what planet do you live on you twat! And will you have a read of this before you go on any more with your childlike fantasies of invincible floating city warships chock full of battlre ready super soldiers:

USS La Salle
Propulsion system: steam turbines, two Babcock & Wilcox boilers
Propellers: two
Length: 521 feet (159 meters)
Beam: 84 feet (25.6 meters)
Draft: 21 feet (6.4 meters)
Displacement: approx. 13,900 tons full load
Speed: 21 knots
Armament: two 20mm Phalanx CIWS, Machine gun mounts
Aircraft: none

Sorry mate, no big yankee bang-bangs.

Eoin Dubsky, congratulations on your continuing efforts.
I like forward to the coming war crime tribunals along the lines of Nuremberg. Regime change in the heart of the empire remains the number one goal.

The dark shattered underbelly of the american dream lies exposed in the blood stained dusts of Iraq.

by Sean Healy Wed May 26, 2004 12:26

An important point of scientific fact: depleted uranium is a toxic heavy metal, like lead. DU dust may be poisonous if inhaled, but as the material is so dense, it doesn't really stay airborne. It's radioactivity consists of alpha particles, which can't even penetrate a piece of ordinary writing paper. In fact, the normal background radiation we are all exposed to every day is more dangerous than DU. Ironically, DU (like lead) can even protect you from more dangerous forms of radiation. Anyway, DU rounds are conventional ammunition tipped with DU, which helps the shell to penetrate armour.

I'm not offering an opinion on whether or not a US warship should be allowed to dock in Dublin Port, but it's more than a little dishonest to act as if the issue here is 'nuclear ammunition'.

by iosaf Wed May 26, 2004 17:15

but there are two USS La Salle's in the fleet.
indeed there are more than one fleet.
you sure you've got the right one?

by pc Wed May 26, 2004 21:48

could it ever have carried du ammunition?