It used to be the waters of the South China Sea and Malacca Straits between Malaysia and Indonesia. were the dangerous waters for shipping. This is now changing in the light of the ever increasing hijackings along the Kenyan Coast, in the Gulf of Aden.

These hijackings are nothing more than high-seas robbery with the terrorist intent of demanding millions of dollars in ransom money.

Photograph: Veronique de Viguerie/Getty Images

The pirate group, formed just three years ago is known as the Central Regional Coast Guard and is led by Abdul Hassan.  It has 350 men in its ranks and about 100 speedboats.  However, there is an increasing rise of the use of ‘mother-ships’, that release fast attack skiffs along with pirates brandishing automatic weapons and grenade launchers. This allows the pirates to move further and further off shore, attacking ships many miles out to sea.

The pirates must have thought they hit pay dirt when in September they captured a Ukrainian freighter, the MV Faina, which was carrying military hardware, including grenade launchers and 33 Soviet-made T72 tanks. When the Sirius Star, the largest crude oil tanker in the world, was hijacked in November 18th, it was the biggest such incident of terrorism in the history of the sea.

Somalia has been without a central government since 1991 and the country is overrun with feuding politicians with private militia. Many of the pirates have personal connections to the politicians’ militia.

The pirates are preying on the lucrative grounds of the Gulf where thousands of ships pass through each year. It is estimated that up to $30 million has already been paid out in ransoms in 2008 alone.

Should the pirates start to scuttle fully loaded oil tankers, because their demands are not met, this would cause an environmental disaster, adding to all the other shipping woes of the area.

Two UK frigates, managed to stop pirates attacking a Danish cargo ship. Russian, US and Danish ships patrol the area, yet still the piracy continues. At least three more ships were hijacked hard on the heels of the Sirius Star being taken.

More than 12 vessels are still in pirate hands with over 200 crew. Ships are boarded and the crew held hostage until such time as the ship owners pay up the ransom.

Pirates have been portrayed as romantic, swash buckling heroes in movies and books. Today we have a group of terrorists, acting as 21st century pirates, which plan to keep the world at ransom in a tiny section of the vast oceans of the world. The difference perhaps is the speed of transport and the power of their weapons, the value of the cargo and the amount of ransom they demand, that has dramatically changed the face of piracy.

It is a pity the pirates don’t look for real Blue Moon Opportunities. (opportunities to change lives for the of mankind). Surely they have enough profits from past highjackings to to something worthwhile now. The problem is that crime and the promise of easy profits becomes addictive.

To learn more about a genuine Blue Moon Opportunity, take a few minutes to visit Win A Resort.

Many shipping companies are abandoning the shorter sea route through the Suez Canal in favour of the safer, longer and rougher  sea- route around the Cape of  Good Hope. This will not only add 12 extra days to the typical voyage, it will increase the freight rates by 25 – 30%. Add to this, the steep increase in insurance for shipping firms.

In the biggest ship hijacking in history, of $100 million worth of crude oil, the hijackers have warned against being offered fake money for any ransom payment. It is still unconfirmed they have demanded $25 million, after having seized the  Sirius Star, a 318,000 tonne crude Saudi oil tanker, one of the largest oil tankers in the world, off the coast of Kenya, on November 18th. The fate of the 25 crew is still unclear. The hijack took place in spite of the fact there were was a NATO warship in the area, protecting commercial shipping.

“The Sirius Star is said to be anchored about 17 miles east of the port of Haradheere, 10 miles out to sea, with 30 Somali pirates on board,” said Ahmed, an associate of the pirates. Three more ships have been hijacked since the Sirius Star was taken.

In 2006 there were 31 attacks on shipping, 60 in 2007, with 20 crew members killed and over 150 injured. There have been 199 recorded attacks in 2008 to September, earning the sea pirates millions of dollars in ransoms. At least 12 of the 2008 ships and more than 200 hostages,  are still under the control of the pirates. Previously the South China Sea and the Malacca Strait between Indonesia and Malaysia had been considered the most dangerous waters. However, recent figures confirm the greatest increase in incidents have occurred off the coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Aden.

The international community believes there can be no end to piracy, in spite of increased sea patrols,  until there is peace among the feuding politicians, with their own militia, in Somalia. Yet Somali security forces threaten to attack and release a Yemeni cargo ship, if the pirates won’t release it without the $2 million ransom being paid. Minister of the semi-autonomous northern Puntland region said, “We have friendly relations with the Yemeni people.” In mid-October the Puntland forces raided and retrieved a Panama flagged ship, the Wail, arresting 10 pirates during a gun battle.

It is a tragedy that the Somali pirates cannot find more rewarding Blue Moon Opportunities, instead of resorting to gangland style piracy on the high seas. It is also an amazing fact that the nations of the world are unable to stop a tiny band of 350 terrorists with their 100 small boats.

If you would like to know more about the author and a genuine Blue Moon Opportunity, take a quick look at Win A Resort

You thought wars were bad enough, as being legal forms of killing the ‘enemy’, but the Pentagon released documents under the Freedom of Information, that gave new ‘edge’ to the old concepts. It was confirmed that in 1994 consideration was given to producing non-lethal chemical weapons, by the Wright Laboratory, at Ohio Air Force Base, for a cost of $US7.5 million.  Weapons that specifically targeted human behavior.

This information blows the mind. Or it begs the question, is this a Blue Moon Opportunity of the weird kind giving a new meaning to the old saying: ‘Make love not war’.

Imagine: A plane zooms over the killing zone at around a 10,000 feet. Shortly after, some of the soldiers on the ground, wipe some moisture off their face. They wonder if it is the warning of an incoming rain storm, but the skies are cloudless. Caught back to the action, as they fight for their lives, they give it no more thought.
The fighting continues to intensify until all of a sudden there is an unearthly silence. One by one the soldiers discard their weapons on the ground. Unbelievably first one soldier then another turns away from the killing ground and begins chatting up some of his mates. Out of the dust of the battle, soldiers from the opposing side appear to be doing the same thing. Before long, a full blown uncontrollable gay party has broken out across the battle field, as enemies join together in ‘no-man’s land’. Much later, the soldiers would learn they had been the recipients of an overdose of strong aphrodisiacs through the means of a ‘Gay Bomb’.

One has to ask, how long would it take for the effects of such a bomb to wear off. We are pleased to be able to report, the idea was dismissed. Other unusual weapons that have been looked at are: invisibility cloaks, killing by mind-power, besides a weapon that would attract annoying creatures to the enemy positions, such as biting bugs, rodents and ‘larger animals’.

All this in the name of assisting the men and women in uniform. With that kind of help, who needs enemies? After all, it seems that fact is stranger than fiction.

It’s time now to take a quick look at a genuine Blue Moon Opportunity.

The genius of an artist is to be able to see ordinary things in a completely new way, particularly if they can be presented with a sense of humour.

Unfortunately we do not know the artist was who saw these everyday items of food as a Blue Moon Opportunity, (a chance to do something special and different). If anyone can point us to the name of the artist of these delightfully clever creations we would love to hear from you.

For another really great Blue Moon Opportunity that could set you free, take a few minutes to check out Win a Resort

It’s official: The successful entrepreneur Richard Branson is about to pick up on a new venture and make another million dollars, in spite of the financial melt-down, in another Blue Moon Opportunity (unique opportunity). It’s a new place to shop for that perfect husband. The rules however are very strict. Only women shopper’s who are genuinely looking for a husband may enter. The instructions to be followed to the letter!

“You may visit this store ONLY ONCE!” You must pay a 10% deposit before being permitted to enter onto the floor. There are 6 floors, but please note the value of the products increase as you climb to the higher floor. You may choose any item from a particular floor, or may choose to move right on up to the next floor, having first retrieved your deposit. However, you CANNOT descend to a lower floor, except to exit the building! Any person found contravening these rules will be immediately evicted from the building via the fire-escape. Please note the store also has a strict No-Return policy.

After reading the sign outside the shop, a female shopper rushed through the door and paid her deposit. On the first floor she read:

Floor 1 – Employed Men

She felt she needed more than that, so she retrieved her 10% and climbed to the second floor.

Floor 2 - Employed Men, Fond of Kids.

Not bad, she thought, but decided there was more. Again she got her deposit back and climbed the stairs.

Floor 3 - Employed Men, Fond of Kids and Handsome, Everyone Loves Them.

Now that sounded pretty good, however it did have echoes of her ex-husband No 2.

Floor 4 - Employed Men, Fond of Kids, Extremely Handsome, Everyone Loves Them, Trained In Housework.

Mmmm. That sounded too good to be true - her cheque book burned in her hand.  But, what’s on the next floor?

Floor 5 - Employed Men, Fond of Kids, Extremely Handsome, Everyone Loves Them, Trained In Housework and Romantic

She knew she should stay and settle for this, but the 6th floor beckoned her. As she started up the stairs she saw another small sign.

‘This time when you pay your money and there will be no refund of the deposit’‘

Oh well, she thought, it would be worth the investment if it was something better than the 5th floor.

Floor 6 – Employed Men, Fond of Kids, Extremely Handsome, Everyone Loves Them, Trained In Housework, Romantic and Very Sexy.

Wow! I’ve hit pay dirt!

However, just inside the door on the 6th floor was a second hand-written sign.

‘Congratulations, You are visitor 31,989,241 to this floor. However, there was only one man available on this floor and he’s married to me.’

So as to avoid any messy law-suits due to gender bias, Richard decided to open a ‘New Wives’ store just across the street. We heard the floors were:

The 1st floor - Wives that love sex.
The 2nd floor - Wives that love sex, have a great body and have money.

We have also heard that the 3rd through 6th floors were closed soon after opening, due to lack of interest by the buyers. We also heard it is almost impossible to find replacement stock for the 2nd floor.Perhaps Richard is going to have to look elsewhere for his next million.

If you would like to take a look at a real Blue Moon Opportunity, spend a few minutes looking at Win A Resort. We guarantee this one is no joke.

Children from a local village, on the tropical island of Vanuatu, recently enjoyed a ‘Black Islands Custom and Conflict’ black and white photographic exhibition held, in the Cultural Center, Port Vila.

The exhibition of black and white photographs is part of the collection taken by the world renowned Australian photo-journalist, Ben Bohane. Ben has sensitively captured custom and conflict images of the South Pacific and South East Asia region since 1989.

Ben has been a witness to most of the major conflicts in the area of the South Pacific, East Timor, West Papua, Moluccu, PGN, Solomon Islands, Bougainville, Vanuatu, Fiji and New Caledonia as a Blue Moon Opportunity, (an opportunity that changes lives).

Ben has had the opportunity to spend expended periods of time, living with a wide variety of tribal, custom, cult and rebel groups. He travelled with Guadalcanal guerrillas, as well as photographing the opposing Malaita Eagle Force. Ben was able to secure the only interview and pictures of Guadalcanal warlord, Harold Keke, before he surrendered to Australian troops.

Ben lays claim to what is deemed to be the largest contemporary photo archive, of the South Pacific, in the world. His highly emotive, but sensitive photographs hang in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art and the Australian War Memorial, as well as being owned to maintain an independent record of any conflict.

“I like to go home to Port Vila, Vanuatu and take a break whenever I can,” Ben told us. He continues to specialize in Australasia and the Pacific region. His exhibitions have included displays in Australia, Washington, Holland and Cambodia, besides appearing in magazines ranging from Newsweek, The Guardian, (UK), Geo in France, Aera (Japan), Pacific magazine(Hawaii), plus numerous Australian publications. His documentaries have been viewed on the ABC, SBS Australia, BBC and ARD, Germany andNHK, Japan. He is also a regular producer for the ABC’s Foreign Correspondent program on Pacific issues.

In a nation where education is not free and 25% of the young generation never go to school, it is exciting to see the interest the children displayed in the exhibition.

For further information on Ben or the photographic exhibition contact the cultural centre pima@vanuatu.com.vu, or look up their website

Vanuatu is the ‘Must See’ travel adventure destination of the South Pacific. You can check out more about this exciting nation at Win A Resort

Lying in the shadow of the live volcano, Mt Yasur, in Sulphur Bay, on the remote tropical island of Tanna, Vanuatu, is the home of the ‘Jon Frum’ movement. This is one of the only remaining ‘cargo’ cults left in the world.

It was formed when ‘John from America’, supposedly an American medic, literally dropped in on this ancient culture, in a plane, distributing medicine and gifts to the local people. It was just before the time when American troops, stationed in Efate and Santo, were assigned to protect the South Pacific islands against a Second World War Japanese invasion.

The cult urged the local people to turn away from the aggressive teaching of the Christian missionaries and to put their faith in their own customs. The arrival of the white man had introduced many new diseases to the local people, causing the population of some of the Vanuatu islands to be almost wiped out.  A further decimation of the population occurred through ‘black-birding’ when thousands of Vanuatu males were conned to go to work in sugar plantations in Queensland, Australia.

Though the true source of Jon Frum is rather blurred, each Friday, outlying villagers walk to Sulphur Bay to honour Jon Frum. The men sing and play guitars while the women dance around them in the light of kerosene lamps. They call to the cowboy spirits, Cowboy Billy, Cowboy Jimmy and Cowboy Steven. These will help them communicate with Jonn Frum. Following a deep rumble, Mt Yasur in the background, lights up the night sky with spurts of glowing lava.

Many of the followers of Jon Frum believe he lives in the volcano. Accompanied by 5,000 troops he will bring sack loads of gifts and liberate Tanna to a glorious new age. At one point the villagers cleared enough bush to make an airstrip and erected a bamboo control tower, hoping to encourage Jon Frum to return in his plane.

For fifty years the Jon Frum followers have paraded on the February 15th, under the leadership of Chief Isaac Wan, in home-made US uniforms, beneath the Stars and Stripes flag. Playing the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ on bamboo flutes and carrying bamboo weapons, they hope to entice another deliver of ‘cargo’.

In 1957 the American warship, the Yankee, visited Tanna. The commander, at the request of local authorities, tried to explain to the villagers there was no such person as Jon Frum in the US. The local villagers dismissed the commander as being ‘a false American’.

David Attenborough, brother of filmmaker Richard Attenborough, one of the first foreigners to find the Jon Frum movement in the 1960’s, asked the people of Tanna, ‘Why wait for someone who never comes?’  One of the islanders is reported to have replied, adding, “You have been waiting for 2,000 years for Jesus Christ.”

Vanuatu is the tropical island ‘Must See’ travel adventure destination of the South Pacific. The perfect place to find a Blue Moon Opportunity, one that will set you free.

If you would like to know more about the author and a Blue Moon Opportunity in Vanuatu take a few minutes to check out Win A Resort

On the tiny tropical island of Vanuatu, a local headmaster, Alick Garae, has been given a Blue Moon Opportunity, (one that will change a lot of lives), in being unexpectedly accepted by the Fulton College in Fiji, to study for his Primary School Bachelor Degree. However, it appears that due to lack of funds, Alick will be unable to accept this great offer.

Alick, a gifted teacher, has dedicated the last 22 years to educating the children of Port Vila, Vanuatu. He has increased the number of students in the Olwi School, in Port Vila, to 150, with classrooms from kindergarten to grade 6.  Soon he hopes to take the school a step further by adding grades 8 to 10.

Alick has also been able to assist many of his staff to gain their local teaching qualifications and continues to train as many of his teachers, as his time permits.

One of Alick’s students has been chosen to be the first pupil to be given a non-repayable high school education grant from the YouMe Support Foundation and Child Trust Fund. A grant that is given only to children whose parents have absolutely no way of being able to raise the funds for their child to continue their education. Unfortunately this is not an uncommon thing in Vanuatu, where there is no free education. Statistics have changed little since the 1990 survey:

• 25% of children will never go to school

• Only 55.8% will reach grade 6

• Only 18.2% will continue on to high school.

Unfortunately it seems Alick finds himself in a similar situation to many of his students. He is unable to raise the funds to take up the golden opportunity to continue his own education, as he has to find $Fiji 4800 by January 2009.

The Fulton College has a special program which includes 11 hours per week of manual labour around the college. This not only improves the students skills in such areas as farming, orchid work, librarian and general gardening, is also of practical use when the students return home, but it allows the college to maintain a low structure of fees.

If anyone is able to assist Alick fulfill his dream of continuing his own education, so he can give better service to his own students and teachers, please contact Mark at the Daily Post on email: publisher@dailypost.com.vu or Dr Wendy on email:  info@seachangelodge.com

If you would like to know more about the author take a few minutes to check out YouMe Support Foundation

The extreme sport of Bungee jumping has  become a world-wide phenomenon but there are some facts you ought to know:

• originated on the tropical island of Vanuatu in the South Pacific when a woman grabbed a vine and leapt out of a tree to get away from her quarrelsome husband. He followed her, without the vine!! This was the first death to bungee jumping.

• The first western country bungee jumpers who dived off the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol, England, on April Fool’s Day 1979, were instantly arrested.

• The highest commercial land bungee jump available is off the Macau Tower in China. At 764 feet, jumpers travel at 125 mph for four to five seconds

• The longest dive from a helicopter was made by Andrew Salisbury in 1991. He dropped 3,157 feet.

• Stuntman Wayne Michaels staged the biggest bungee jump ever filmed. In 2002 he jumped off the Verzasca Dam in Switzerland, 720 feet, for opening scene of the James Bond movie, Golden Eye. This is now a terrifying commercial jump of over seven seconds.

• A jumper died in front of Queen Elizabeth on the island of Pentecost, in Vanuatu, in 1976.

• Carl Dionisio used a cord made of condoms for a 100ft jump in South Africa.

• Bungee jumping can cause dislocation, rope burn, back injury and eye trauma, besides an occasional death

• The island of Pentecost ceremonial land jump, from 70 foot bamboo towers, is to ensure the yam harvest for the coming year. Participants must brush the ground with their shoulders. Before diving they shout out whatever is on their heart about their inner feelings, as it may be the last time they have a chance to do so. Other participants help the stunned diver quickly to their feet.

• All Pentecost divers have to make their own vines. Too long and they hit the earth too hard. Too short and they hit the tower.

• Young Pentecost boys are initiated into the custom ceremony, by diving from lower levels to begin with.

This religious festival and can be viewed every year between the months of April and June, on the tropical island of Vanuatu, the ‘Must See’ travel adventure destination of the South Pacific.

To find more about great Blue Moon Opportunities of the South Pacific take a quick visit to Win A Resort. It could change your life.