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I would expect anyone with something to hide would ensure their boat is setup for fishing. It isn't hard to do and makes a great cover. There are a few other

I would expect anyone with something to hide would ensure their boat is setup for fishing. It isn't hard to do and makes a great cover. There are a few other legal activities you can use as cover, fishing is just the most obvious. I have no idea if they really were doing anything but it is the obvious cover if they were.

aerostable_slug 1y ago
Footage of the boats to date show they aren't trying to spoof legitimate fishing vessels. They are IMHO very clearly dope haulers and anyone saying otherwise is either extremely credulous or not being honest with everyone. Fishermen don't use boats that are painted to camouflage themselves and have a bank of powerful performance engines. The dopers probably have realized that the deception angle doesn't work and just wastes payload space, so you're better off trying not to be seen at all. I suspect what happens IRL is that boats are boarded with men with dogs and the ruse falls apart, so the doper leadership decided to stop bothering with all the subterfuge and just try to (sometimes literally) run under the radar, maximizing cargo space so the runs that get through realize the most revenue.
- anigbrowl 1y ago
  The probably are dope haulers, that does not make murdering them OK.
  - samlinnfer 1y ago
    Killing all drug haulers/dealers is ok, I fully support what they do in China and most of East Asia. The amount of society damage from drugs warrants it.
    - RobertoG 1y ago
      That's a different discussion, because this is the killing of foreign nationals in international waters without judicial supervision. If you are OK with that, then, you are, basically, OK with everything.
      - hamhock666 1y ago
        Aren't they waters near our coast? Do we not kill pirates on the other side of the world?
        swiftcoder 1y ago
        The waters are not near our coasts, no. Venezuela is the opposite side of the Caribbean Sea...
    - michaelmrose 1y ago
      Even if we accept all are guilty based on nothing killing 66 smugglers isn't going to meaningfully reduce harm or even the drug supply. You are arguing for abandoning the rule of law and inevitable unjustifiable murder when mistakes are made for... nothing
      - swaits 1y ago
        It is almost certainly deterring many more than the 66 who were aggressively deterred.
    - wqaatwt 1y ago
      Would you extend this to all other crimes that cause a lot of societal damage?
- pksebben 1y ago
  > Footage of the boats to date show they aren't trying to spoof legitimate fishing vessels. This is a great moment to share a link or some other source of verisimilitude. Also no one uses "dope" anymore - don't forget to migrate, we're on Reagan v3.0 now.
  - aerostable_slug 1y ago
    Okay. https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2025/09/15/us-attacks-alleged-venezuela-drug-boat-strike-video-map/86171749007/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2025/09/15/us-attack... If you think those are fishing boats you don't know very much about fishing. Those are dope haulers. The question of whether dope haulers deserve a .mil missile is separate from establishing exactly what those boats are and exactly what they are doing — something I think anyone with half a brain inwardly knows even if they maintain otherwise in public forums like this one.
    - pksebben 1y ago
      Couple of points; What you think is going on in other people's brains, partial or not, is inaccurate. This is generally true for pretty much everyone, but especially in a case like yours where you seem utterly convinced that you know. I do not know what is on those boats, and neither do you. Neither of us will ever find out, because they were sunk before any actual facts could be verified. This is precisely why we have due process. In the scheme of things, I am much more worried about a well-armed force committing extrajudicial killings than I am "some dudes who might have drugs". The fact that you seem very concerned about the latter and are totes cool with the former is... concerning, to say the least. I do appreciate you posting your sources, so thanks for that.
      - aerostable_slug 1y ago
        I'm responding directly to a post on using subterfuge to pretend to be fishermen, and further addressing the oft-stated opinion that fishing boats are being targeted. They aren't bothering pretending to be fishermen, and also stating my personal opinion that most people saying they are fishing boats know they're not (and thus are being dishonest). Those are separate points than fighting drug trafficking with missile strikes.
- bamboozled 1y ago
  The issue most people have is not about the murder of drug smugglers, it’s the lack of a trial. It’s the lack of real evidence being shown to the public. It’s the fact there actually might be innocents on those boats. It’s completely normal for people in 2025 to expect we arrest and not just kill people randomly. The USA was respected because it believed in those ethos…because it was better then a bunch of angry murderers.
  - rixed 1y ago
    Amnesia is a powerful drug. https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-01-17/obamas-covert-drone-war-in-numbers-ten-times-more-strikes-than-bush/ https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-01-17/oba...
  - swiftcoder 1y ago
    > The issue most people have is not about the murder of drug smugglers I'm definitely anti-murder, regardless of whether or not there is a trial. Over 70% of countries have abolished the death penalty...
    - bluGill 1y ago
      I'm not against the death penalty if the person is really guilty. Problem is no all-powerful God is in the courts and so there is always doubt - a few people have been proven innocent after many years and we have no way of knowing if there are more or not at any given time.
- 8note 1y ago
  the narco subs meanwhile, are barely above water. they arent gonna look like boats at all, and also dont have a bank of powerful performance engines. instead, they have low powered engines to avoid detection. low and slow
- enaaem 1y ago
  Let's say they look like dope haulers. Then just go in and arrest them like every civilised country in the world.
dashundchen 1y ago
It does not fucking matter. Even if there are drugs on the boat. You can't kill people who present no immediate threat to anyone without due process. It's a human rights travesty. What stops them from declaring you or me from being drug smugglers and drone striking us? You won't be able to dispute the accusation after, that's for sure.

aerostable_slug 1y ago

Footage of the boats to date show they aren't trying to spoof legitimate fishing vessels. They are IMHO very clearly dope haulers and anyone saying otherwise is either extremely credulous or not being honest with everyone. Fishermen don't use boats that are painted to camouflage themselves and have a bank of powerful performance engines. The dopers probably have realized that the deception angle doesn't work and just wastes payload space, so you're better off trying not to be seen at all. I suspect what happens IRL is that boats are boarded with men with dogs and the ruse falls apart, so the doper leadership decided to stop bothering with all the subterfuge and just try to (sometimes literally) run under the radar, maximizing cargo space so the runs that get through realize the most revenue.

anigbrowl 1y ago
The probably are dope haulers, that does not make murdering them OK.
- samlinnfer 1y ago
  Killing all drug haulers/dealers is ok, I fully support what they do in China and most of East Asia. The amount of society damage from drugs warrants it.
  - RobertoG 1y ago
    That's a different discussion, because this is the killing of foreign nationals in international waters without judicial supervision. If you are OK with that, then, you are, basically, OK with everything.
    - hamhock666 1y ago
      Aren't they waters near our coast? Do we not kill pirates on the other side of the world?
      - swiftcoder 1y ago
        The waters are not near our coasts, no. Venezuela is the opposite side of the Caribbean Sea...
  - michaelmrose 1y ago
    Even if we accept all are guilty based on nothing killing 66 smugglers isn't going to meaningfully reduce harm or even the drug supply. You are arguing for abandoning the rule of law and inevitable unjustifiable murder when mistakes are made for... nothing
    - swaits 1y ago
      It is almost certainly deterring many more than the 66 who were aggressively deterred.
  - wqaatwt 1y ago
    Would you extend this to all other crimes that cause a lot of societal damage?
pksebben 1y ago
> Footage of the boats to date show they aren't trying to spoof legitimate fishing vessels. This is a great moment to share a link or some other source of verisimilitude. Also no one uses "dope" anymore - don't forget to migrate, we're on Reagan v3.0 now.
- aerostable_slug 1y ago
  Okay. https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2025/09/15/us-attacks-alleged-venezuela-drug-boat-strike-video-map/86171749007/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/graphics/2025/09/15/us-attack... If you think those are fishing boats you don't know very much about fishing. Those are dope haulers. The question of whether dope haulers deserve a .mil missile is separate from establishing exactly what those boats are and exactly what they are doing — something I think anyone with half a brain inwardly knows even if they maintain otherwise in public forums like this one.
  - pksebben 1y ago
    Couple of points; What you think is going on in other people's brains, partial or not, is inaccurate. This is generally true for pretty much everyone, but especially in a case like yours where you seem utterly convinced that you know. I do not know what is on those boats, and neither do you. Neither of us will ever find out, because they were sunk before any actual facts could be verified. This is precisely why we have due process. In the scheme of things, I am much more worried about a well-armed force committing extrajudicial killings than I am "some dudes who might have drugs". The fact that you seem very concerned about the latter and are totes cool with the former is... concerning, to say the least. I do appreciate you posting your sources, so thanks for that.
    - aerostable_slug 1y ago
      I'm responding directly to a post on using subterfuge to pretend to be fishermen, and further addressing the oft-stated opinion that fishing boats are being targeted. They aren't bothering pretending to be fishermen, and also stating my personal opinion that most people saying they are fishing boats know they're not (and thus are being dishonest). Those are separate points than fighting drug trafficking with missile strikes.
bamboozled 1y ago
The issue most people have is not about the murder of drug smugglers, it’s the lack of a trial. It’s the lack of real evidence being shown to the public. It’s the fact there actually might be innocents on those boats. It’s completely normal for people in 2025 to expect we arrest and not just kill people randomly. The USA was respected because it believed in those ethos…because it was better then a bunch of angry murderers.
- rixed 1y ago
  Amnesia is a powerful drug. https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-01-17/obamas-covert-drone-war-in-numbers-ten-times-more-strikes-than-bush/ https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-01-17/oba...
- swiftcoder 1y ago
  > The issue most people have is not about the murder of drug smugglers I'm definitely anti-murder, regardless of whether or not there is a trial. Over 70% of countries have abolished the death penalty...
  - bluGill 1y ago
    I'm not against the death penalty if the person is really guilty. Problem is no all-powerful God is in the courts and so there is always doubt - a few people have been proven innocent after many years and we have no way of knowing if there are more or not at any given time.
8note 1y ago
the narco subs meanwhile, are barely above water. they arent gonna look like boats at all, and also dont have a bank of powerful performance engines. instead, they have low powered engines to avoid detection. low and slow
enaaem 1y ago
Let's say they look like dope haulers. Then just go in and arrest them like every civilised country in the world.

dashundchen 1y ago

It does not fucking matter. Even if there are drugs on the boat. You can't kill people who present no immediate threat to anyone without due process. It's a human rights travesty. What stops them from declaring you or me from being drug smugglers and drone striking us? You won't be able to dispute the accusation after, that's for sure.