I'm probably not as well informed as you guys on topical US affairs but I take a simplistic view.
The Indian/UAE boat may have been stupid and made a mistake.
I don't know the conditions on the day but visibility and seaspray can obscure vision. That US ship does not have a distinct warship profile. A quick glance at the picture and it looks to me like a regular ship.
I doubt the UAE boat would have continued its course in the face of a clear warning. Even with the warnings given, clearly they were inadaquate.
It was not a terrorist attack and now one of them is dead.
The US ship firing on the UAE boat may be understandable, however, where I come from, a perceived need to defend yourself has never been a reasonable legal defense for killing innocent people(aka murder).
People need to be held accountable for their actions, even if it is understandable. I believe it's called manslaughter.
As a 'superpower' the US should hold itself to a higher standard than this......with power comes responsibility. And, yup, if they going go around killing people at will, then we may just as well be protected by the Chinese.....same thing isn't it?
@tbaylx, I have to admit that I am not a fan of US foreign policy, although I agree with you, its a nice country internally(finances aside). However, surely even you have to admit that this cinema shooting is bizarre and your people are asking themeslves how this guy bought 6000 rounds of ammunition without raising suspicion. Freedom has it's limits and I have yet to understand what ordinary citizens need fully automatic rifles for?
Also, I should point out that in the UAE there is no requirement to have a skippers licence for small boats, so why would these guys have known about the 'special' rules of engagement for a US warship? There is no list of rules available domestically, so these guys would not have been aware of these special requirements unless they had googled them beforehand.