More Pirates...

I think that's using the term losely. Sounds more like an armed robbery that happened to take place on a yacht. Give them credit for at least going where the money is, but they don't sound like criminal masterminds.

What is piracy if not robbery on boats?

These stories always seem to bring out the 3rd grade macho bravado on these threads, yet it seems like those actually in the situation did neither, same as the vast majority of victims of piracy. Anybody with half a brain knows that your life is not about to get less complicated if you kill someone in a foreign land, and there's nothing cool about it. Let's grow up. Those who have do the deed don't talk, and those who talk would generally stain their underwear.

As I said, it fits the definition, but I don't consider some poor slob who needs to rob people to live in the same class as the Somalie pirates who steal ships and hold their cargo and passengers for ransom, nor Blackbeard. If a multi-million dollar yacht hadn't presented itself as an attractive target I suspect these guys would have been rolling a drunk. Obviously the yacht's owner considers it about that serious as well since it appears he's not persuing the matter.

Come on!
Using "Piracy" to describe this is simply seeking attention to yourself and the incident. The fact is these guys were opportunistic thieves who happened to use a boat to get to a place that they could rob.
Piracy is an organised expedition with crew. Your post may add to the damage done to a wonderful location populated with very hospitable people. Save this alarmist "PIRACY!" headline for a real issue of the crime.
Give it a break.

NEO, I would hope you have the wherewithal to see that a dictionary or Wikipedia explanation on "Piracy" is not a response. If not, keep posting for the sake of just...posting.

When you've got an argument about the appropriateness of a word choice a dictionary is absolutely an adequate resource to make an argument that will sway reasonable people. Most murderers aren't like OJ Simpson or Ted Bundy, though that sort of person may be archetypal for murder. Similarly most pirates aren't Jack Sparrow or the Somalis. Most pirates are small time criminals of opportunity striking out in small boats with weapons in hand.

What makes them stand out is that boats are so accessible and the boating community so trust based. Walk the dock in any marina and you will find a whole lot of unlocked boats with expensive gear onboard. Walk the parking lot of the same marina and you will find lots of locked cars. There is a real functional difference between being held up on land and being held up at sea, and that's why pirate is the appropriate term, even if they don't rise to the level of planning and resources that some of the more notable examples have.

If you walk into a store and steal a piece of candy, a prosecutor out to get you will charge you with a dozen different offenses. The cops may even shoot you, justifying their action by saying you made a "furtive movement". Thechnically they're correct because your actions fit the definitions. But you've still only stuck a piece of candy in your pocket without paying for it.
This thread, along with several of the comments, is rediculous. It's a non-story.