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616
May 5, 2017

I Am Not a Pirate

To be, or not to be a pirate? This week, that is the question. Hold fast, mateys! We have stories about both historical and modern-day swashbucklers who loot, pillage, and question their choices.

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  • Transcript

Library of Congress

Prologue

Ira talks to producer Elna Baker about Stede Bonnet, a nobleman who woke up one day and decided that his new life goal was to become a pirate. You can read the trials of Stede Bonnet online. (12 1/2 minutes)

By

Ira Glass
Act One

Pirate Change Denier

Mohammed Aden was just a regular Minnesotan dad who unwittingly became governor of a region in Somalia. As governor, one of his main goals was to eliminate piracy. So why is he now sitting in prison for colluding with pirates? Producer Dana Chivvis investigates. (42 minutes)

By

Dana Chivvis
Update

Update on Mohamed “Tiiceey” Aden from "I Am Not A Pirate"

Act Two

C.E.Yo-Ho-Ho.

Producer Stephanie Foo talks to author and pirate historian Laura Sook Duncombe about the most successful pirate of all time, Cheng I Sao. Duncombe is author of the book "Pirate Women: The Princesses, Prostitutes and Privateers Who Ruled the Seven Seas." (8 minutes)

By

Stephanie Foo

Song:

“The Pirate Shanty” by Worldwide Adventurers

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