DEVGRU / Navy SEAL Team SIX save the day

U.S.S. Bainbridge, today's most popular vessel

"The world has become a much more dangerous place, and it's a problem that is getting worse all the time. We're all keenly aware that the ante has been upped."

~Joseph Murphy, who teaches anti-piracy tactics in his maritime security class at Massachusetts Maritime Academy, and -- ironically -- whose own son is first mate to Captain Richard Philips


With all the insanity off the coast of Somalia, it worries me a bit that my nephew is about to major in Marine Transportation at Massachusetts Maritime Academy this autumn. But it's reassuring to know that if something were to happen to him while he's in the middle of the ocean "towing shit," as he so eloquently refers to his future profession, the U.S. military has this kid's back.

Today, with President Obama's permission on the condition that the captain's life was in danger, the Navy took care of business sniper-style by killing three of the four pirates holding hostage Captain Richard Philips, who also learned the captaining ropes at Mass Maritime. According to Fox News,

They established clear head shots on all three pirates: one was visible through the front window, and the other two were revealing their heads through the top hatch, presumably to get fresh air. It would be their last breath.

President Obama later called several military officials, including Vice Admiral William McRaven, Commander of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). The Joint Special Ops commander overseas the Army's Delta Force, the Air Force's Intelligence Support Activity (ISA), other secret teams that have yet to be disclosed -- and the Navy SEALTeam SIX. Which means that these SEALS are today's badass heroes.



SEAL Team SIX is also known as DEVGRU, for Special Warfare Development Group. It was founded in 1980 by Dick Marcinko. His website says:

Marcinko sold the idea and was eventually tasked with creating and commanding SEAL Team SIX, the Navy’s first and only counter-terrorist command. SEAL Team SIX engaged in highly classified missions from Central America to the Middle East, the North Sea to Africa and beyond, and established itself as the world’s foremost counter-terrorism unit.

These pics are of Mr. Marcinko. Think he's gotten into a few fights in his special ops lifetime? His poor nose sure seems to alude to that.

I'm glad these guys were there for Captain Philips. There's a lot of info about DEVGRU here in case you want to learn a bit more about them.

Special ops badass

America's special operations forces operate at the tip of the spear often behind enemy lines conducting secret missions. The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps all have dedicated special operations units, including, Navy SEALs, Army Green Berets and Rangers, Air commandos and Marine Corps special ops personnel.

Their impact on our way of life is immeasurable. We may never read or know about most of their work and when a special operator loses their life in the line of duty, it often goes unreported. It is the price of secrecy - a by-product of their profession.

~ Special Operations Warrior Foundation

This weaponry is displayed in the living room of a friend of mine whom I met recently in my maritime safety class. I'm like, "Okay, what is the deal?" I mean this Gurkha knife didn't strike me as your run-of-the-mill bachelor pad decor. Turns out he is ex special ops. I've known two other special ops guys who were co-workers when I worked for the federal government, and their stories were mind boggling. I ask this guy about some stuff and he tells me the craziest story ever.

Back in the day, he was in a South American jungle country trying to rescue some people that were captured by guerrillas. Things didn't go as planned, and he too got captured. The guerrillas tied him to a wood chair and kept smashing him in the face with a metal gas can. He decided to really play it up and when they hit him, he made sure to dramatically crash to the floor, still tied to the chair. His purpose in doing this was to "bust up the chair real well, and it worked."

"Why did you want to break the chair?" I ask.

Get this. Still tied to the broken chair, he was able to loosen the piece of wood he was tied to, but because it had splintered when he crashed to the floor, it now had a pointy end. And, with his hands still tied to the pointy piece of wood, he used it as a weapon and stabbed his captor in the neck, killing him instantly.

My jaw drops. "You," I tell my friend, are a badass!" If he could do that with a chair, I can't imagine he could do with that crazy knife.

As badass as special ops guys are, they are still very prone to post-traumatic stress, my friend informed me. He said nobody can truly understand what they have endured except for other guys who've done and gone through the same thing. If you want to give to a great charity these holidays, the Special Operations Warrior Foundation is a four-star charity that's been around for 28 years. They provide, among other things, scholarships for the kids of fallen special ops guys. I had never heard of SOWF until I saw their full-page ad in yesterday's USA Today. What a cool organization.