Apparently, British Navy Are Using Britney Spears's Songs To Scare Off Somali Pirates
Britney's hits, including Oops! I Did It Again and Baby One More Time, are being employed by British naval officers in an attempt to scare off pirates along the east coast of Africa.
By Sadho Ram — 01 Nov 2013, 10:48 AM — Updated almost 11 years ago
How Britney Spears is being used as a secret weapon to fight Somali pirates
Navy ships are using Britney Spears to scare off Somali pirates. Captains are playing the popstar's hits at full volume to deter 'western culture-hating' pirates and stop them boarding the ships, merchant navy officer Rachel Owens revealed to the Metro.
theguardian.com
Her classic hits Baby One More Time and Oops! I Did It Again are being used and have proved effective at stopping kidnap attempts from bandits.
'Hit Me Baby, One More Time': Somali pirates apparently hate Western music - especially Britney Spears
Image via dailymail.co.ukSecond Officer Owens, who works on supertankers off the east coast of Africa, said:
‘Her songs were chosen by the security team because they thought the pirates would hate them most. These guys can’t stand Western culture or music, making Britney’s hits perfect.’
time.com
YOU WANT SOME? Officer Rachel Owen wields her weapon of choise – Britney hits!
Image via dailystar-uk.co.uk“It’s so effective the ship’s security rarely needs to resort to firing guns,” Owens said. “As soon as the pirates get a blast of Britney, they move on as quickly as they can.”
thedailybeast.com"The music is currently used as a second line of defence and is broadcast when initial calls from armed security guards on board fail to deter the pirates."
dailystar.co.uk
However, 'The Atlantic Wire' points out a different side to the story, pointing out that the barrage of sound is what deters pirates.
The thought is that Britney Spears is (for better or worse) synonymous with Western culture, and Somali pirates hate Western culture, so therefore, it deters them. And that's half the story.
theatlanticwire.comWhile Britney Spears might be the music that irritates Somali pirates most, Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) defense systems have been in use for a while.
LRADs blast walls of sound which bring people to their knees, and have been used to quell riots and deter pirates in the past. "In 2008, a British cruise ship successfully used LRAD to repel Somali pirates.
theatlanticwire.comLRAD is a proprietary product of the LRAD Corporation, who make a significant portion of their sales from commercial shipping," Fast Company reported.
Essentially anything played that loud would be unbearable. And Britney Spears is just the weapon of choice.
foxnews.com
Way to go, Britney. Keep cranking out those hits. The more you sing, the safer we'll all be while traveling the high seas!
