When people hear the word pirate, I'm pretty sure the same goes through everyone's mind. It reminds them of sword fighting, hooked hands, cannons going off, and buried treasure. They are the image of people who existed long ago. But now their back, wreaking havoc out on the open sea. Piracy is growing because of the lack of protection in the waters; they can easily seize a boat, obtain all the ships goods, and get off scot free. Just this year there have been 39 ships hijacked, mostly in the Gulf of Aden. But now different countries are trying to help. The Indian Navy recently sank a suspected Somalian mother ship in the Gulf of Aden, a ship that is used as a mobile base for these bands of pirates out at sea.
At first I was just surprised of the fact that there were still pirates out there. But now I just find it interesting not that they are still around, but how they have evolved. If all the movies that have represented piracy in the past are in the least bit accurate, then piracy has really changed. The firing of cannons, the glorious sword fights, and the image of pirates swinging on ropes to hop on board their opposing ship have been replaced. The sword fighting and the need for close up combat have been diminished due to the advancement in ammunition. Now people battling it out at sea will no longer see an iron cannon ball flying their way, but they will see grenades and other explosives being thrown their way. This advancement in weapons has also had the same effect on the evolution of land wars too. What used to be courageous and glorifying face to face combat of the past has now turned into the a cowardly fight where all one has to do is pull a trigger to ruin a life.
