Let slip the sea lions of war

Demerzel · March 11, 2003, 19:09

Quote:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/mid...st/2839155.stm
With the military build-up in the Persian Gulf showing no sign of abating the US Navy has unveiled its secret weapon - a crack troupe of sea lions.

The specially trained mammals have been deployed to the region to protect US and British warships against attacks from underwater saboteurs and mines.

These whiskered warriors are even capable of clamping a floating marker to the legs of an intruder, alerting troops to his position, who can then move in and haul the attacker out of the water.

heh, I love it

MichaeltheGreat · March 11, 2003, 19:13

Stronger than the average SEAL by far - and probably smarter than most, too.

Gangerolf · March 11, 2003, 19:16

intelligent buggers.

do they use dolphins as well or is that just in red alert?

MichaeltheGreat · March 11, 2003, 19:21

Yep, they use dolphins, too. They're trained in San Diego, at an annex of one of the Navy bases here - the fleet sub base at Point Loma, IIRC.

Sprayber · March 11, 2003, 19:21

Quote:

And in the event of a US-led attack on Iraq the US army plans to ride chickens into battle in cages atop Humvees, used as early warning gas detectors.

The US Army calls the strategy Operation Kuwaiti Field Chicken - or KFC - but the plan has been put on hold after 41 of the 43 chickens deployed to the Gulf died within a week of arrival.

It appears that the animal kingdome has cast it's lot in with the US.

Dis · March 11, 2003, 19:23

yes PETA is very, very upset about the dead chikens.

But it's not like they have to be wasted. They can be fried up and eaten.

Kramerman · March 11, 2003, 19:24

Quote:

Originally posted by Gangerolf
intelligent buggers.

do they use dolphins as well or is that just in red alert?

In the 80's there were stiff protests against the Navy training 'killer' dolphins (which they had been experimenting with since much earlier) that were basicaly trained into preditors that would hunt Soviet divers (who were basicly all over NATO ports spying) and kill them (i forget the exact method, but IIRC it had somethn to do with a large blade attached to tehir backs or somethn) and also were trained to attach explosives to enemy ship hulls (and suicuide missions).

I saw a thing about this on the Histpry channel a couple years back... so my memory is a little shady on the whole bit.

KrazyHorse · March 11, 2003, 19:35

Quote:

Originally posted by Demerzel

heh, I love it

They're soon to be receiving a stern letter from PETA.

Dis · March 11, 2003, 19:36

those dolphins were mistreated too

I kind of felt bad the navy I was in was responsible for the cruel treatment of those dolphins.

Demerzel · March 11, 2003, 19:41

I was celebrating the fact that the average dolphin or sealion is a better combatant than the US SEALs

I was not considering the cruelty angle in this thread.

St Leo · March 11, 2003, 19:43

Hitler's hypothetical invasion of Britain was codenamed Sealion. Bush is becoming more and more like the ol' Fuehrer every day.

Kramerman · March 11, 2003, 19:54

Quote:

Originally posted by St Leo
Hitler's hypothetical invasion of Britain was codenamed Sealion. Bush is becoming more and more like the ol' Fuehrer every day.

and if you change the letter B, to an H, U to I, S to T, H to L, and add an E and an R, then Bush's name would spell Hitler!!!

Coincidence??? I think not!

Skanky Burns · March 11, 2003, 20:09