It is amazing how a simple question that started this thread has touched upon so many significant, important, and meaningful issues. I feel compelled to respond to all of them, but will spare all of you from a long rambling post. So let me respond to a couple of issues while my dinner is warming on the stove.
The purpose of this forum is to discuss issues related to owning a sailboat, after all, it is SailBoatOwners.com. And there are plenty of controversial issues that wholly lie with the confines of owning a sailboat, varnish vs. Cetol vs gray teak comes quickly to mind. However, on this thread and others sailing as a pastime butts up against bigger and more controversial issues, climate change, individual rights, and immediately relevant to this thread 2nd amendment issues. So, how do we address these issues? Do we sweep them under the rug and ignore them? Can we discuss them in a mature manner, without name calling and personal attacks? How do we elevate the conversation, here or elsewhere, to an adult level?
The second issue, and its not really an issue, is history. One poster seemed surprised that private vessels could or would be used for national defense. Despite all the hoopla about threats from those who wish us ill, since the end of the Viet Nam war in 1975 most people in the country have been insulated from the effects of war. Those of us of a certain age remember the impact of war upon our country. When I entered middle school D-Day was still recent history, it occurred only 20 years before. Looking back 20 years from today, the US was mostly at peace. There was that issue in Bosnia, but the effects at home were pretty minimal. Going back 40 years, the US was not involved in any significant way in any military actions, OK, there was that Grenada invasion...
Bringing this back to the comments about using recreational vessels in the war effort during WWII, let me suggest reading Herman Wouk's books,
The Winds of War and
War and Remembrance. These are epic engaging books and not casual reading, however, they are well worth the effort if for no other reason than to understand what the world was like not so long ago.
There are amongst us, folks who are concerned about the direction our country is heading, this may not be the forum to raise those issues, but do not be silent, find the venue and let your voice be heard.