Read the following accurate account.

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Philips' first leap into the warm, dark water of the Indian Ocean hadn't
worked out as well. With the Bainbridge in range and a rescue by his
country's Navy possible, Philips threw himself off of his lifeboat
prison, enabling Navy shooters onboard the destroyer a clear shot at his
captors - and none was taken.

 The guidance from National Command Authority - the president of the
United States, Barack Obama - had been clear: a peaceful solution was
the only acceptable outcome to this standoff unless the hostage's life
was in clear, extreme danger.

The next day, a small Navy boat approaching the floating raft was fired
on by the Somali pirates - and again no fire was returned and no pirates
killed. This was again due to the cautious stance assumed by Navy
personnel thanks to the combination of a lack of clear guidance from
Washington and a mandate from the commander in chief's staff not to act
until Obama, a man with no background of dealing with such issues and no
track record of decisiveness, decided that any outcome other than a
"peaceful solution" would be acceptable.

After taking fire from the Somali kidnappers again Saturday night, the
onscenecommander decided he'd had enough.

 Keeping his authority to act in the case of a clear and present danger
to the hostage's life and having heard nothing from Washington since yet
another request to mount a rescue operation had been denied the day
before, the Navy officer - unnamed in all media reports to date -
decided the AK47 one captor had leveled at Philips' back was a threat to
the hostage's life and ordered the NSWC team to take their shots.

Three rounds downrange later, all three brigands became enemy KIA and
Philips was safe.

There is upside, downside, and spinside to the series of events over the
last week that culminated in yesterday's dramatic rescue of an American
hostage.

Almost immediately following word of the rescue, the Obama
administration and its supporters claimed victory against pirates in the
Indian Ocean and [1] declared that the dramatic end to the standoff put
paid to questions of the inexperienced president's toughness and
decisiveness.

Despite the Obama administration's (and its sycophants') attempt to spin
yesterday's success as a result of bold, decisive leadership by the
inexperienced president, the reality is nothing of the sort.  What
should have been a standoff lasting only hours - as long as it took the
USS Bainbridge and its team of NSWC operators to steam to the location -
became an embarrassing four day and counting standoff between a ragtag
handful of criminals with rifles and a U.S. Navy warship.