On Thu, 24 Mar 2005 15:38:02 GMT, Don W
wrote:


Quick summary for latecomers: Having a gun aboard will be quite a hassle
at check-in in many countries you visit. Not declaring it can get you
arrested and your boat confiscated, along with lengthy stays in a
third-world prison. If you declare, many places will sieze your weapon and
hold it for you until you are ready to check out, and it may disappear
during the holding process. In any case it will mean that you have to
come back to the check-in city before departing, and that may be quite
an inconvenience depending on your plans.

I fully understand this. That's part of why it's a hard decision, but
that decision is determined on the intelligence and local, evolving
situations a foreign yachtie is able to gather about parts of the
world one wishes to sail but where the government and the governed are
perhaps some distance apart...or where the government doesn't much
care if yachts are pillaged and foreigners fed to the sharks.

As far as the Yemen incident in recent threads, I don't think that your "beer
can" flamethrower would have been much help. Also, the cruiser involved
was fairly lucky in his engagement of multiple AK-47s vs his shotgun.

Very much so. One of the arguments for steel boats that isn't often
touched upon. Or kevlar, perhaps G.

The question of defensive weapons for yachts is very complicated and
the answer is likely to be highly personal and depend on a lot of
things (such as where you are going to cruise).

Very true. I see nothing with which to argue here. Perhaps the
seemingly exotic "suppression" weapons (super-loud sound, tasers,
"pain rays") will prove in time to be a better choice than blasting
skinny hoodlums with shot. I think, however, the best idea is to
dissuade them from ever getting within whatever range some miserable
thug possesses. That could mean "you're on Candid Piracy Camera!"
and/or travelling in convoy, and/or announcing on Ch. 16 in the local
tongue that you will defend your home by all means at your disposal.

Could get interesting. Or you could simply never sail near the
innumerable ********s of the world where yacht custom is not
appreciated.

R.