You and your friends spend days hauling the stuff up to your boat. In the meantime news of your discovery somehow goes around the world, and the stuff you are pulling up has the potential to set you and your friends for life. Or would it?
Who would the treasure belong to? Can a country send a warship out and demand you give the treasure to them, even though the treasure obviously belongs to no one existing today and that the waters you got them from aren't in any country's jurisdiction(sp?)?
Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it's just the opposite. - John Kenneth Galbraith
(to clarify, I'm referring to getting a warship sent after you. I'm not sure if it would be entirely legal, but since it's international waters they could probably get away with it) Gunslinger Moogle fucked around with this message on 02-15-2005 at 05:01 PM.
Disclaimer: I'm just kidding, I love all living things.
The fastest draw in the Crest.
"The Internet is MY critical thinking course." -Maradon
"Gambling for the husband, an abortion for the wife and fireworks for the kids they chose to keep? Fuck you, Disneyland. The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is the happiest place on Earth." -JooJooFlop
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Karnaj had this to say about pies:
The person who discovers a shipwreck becomes its owner, or rather, he can become its owner and do with it as he pleases. I'm fairly sure you have to register the wreck with some sort of governing body.
I believe the law is 'finders keepers' in international waters, no registration of any sort required.
But then again all my experience with this is from the movie Ghost Ship.
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When the babel fish was in place, it was apparent Karnaj said:
The person who discovers a shipwreck becomes its owner, or rather, he can become its owner and do with it as he pleases. I'm fairly sure you have to register the wreck with some sort of governing body.
In most countries, this holds true as long as the Governement hasn't decreed grave peace (rough translation from swedish, forgive me) over the wreck. In some, you also have to pay tax on what you find.
In international waters, finders keepers. Zaza fucked around with this message on 02-15-2005 at 05:13 PM.
Other than that, you'd be in the clear.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
I want half.
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Azakias got all f'ed up on Angel Dust and wrote:
I'm not too sure, but I think the government you are a part of (US, UK, etc) would govern what you can do with it. However, said government would probably have to deal with all sorts of foreign affairs and whatnot from other countries who think it should be theirs.
If it's valuable or it's a financial gain I imagine the government gets what it wants in tax.
sigpic courtesy of This Guy, original modified by me
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Verily, OrangeBrand doth proclaim:
maybe he found all the lost ships in the bermuda triangle and is asking "hypo" to just get info and not alert to many people.. now the little secret is out..I want half.
I'm not sure Kennatsu ever leaves his home.
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Waisz said this:
I'm not sure Kennatsu ever leaves his home.
And you do? 
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Callalron had this to say about Robocop:
Mel Fisher fought this battle years ago when he found the Spanish treasure ship "Atocha" off the Florida Keys. You find it, it's yours. The only possible exception I can think of would if the ship and its cargo were insured and the insurance company paid a claim on the loss of ship and cargo.Other than that, you'd be in the clear.
I thought that precedent had been overturned recently, with the Titanic and a couple of others.
--Satan, quoted by John Milton
...and you farted like sixty feet underwater. Would it still be a fart when the bubble reached the surface? Would it dissipate into many small bubbles or remain one large one? Would it smell better or worse?
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Bloodsage probably says this to all the girls:
I thought that precedent had been overturned recently, with the Titanic and a couple of others.
That was actually a choice made by Dr. Ballard, who discovered the HMS Titanic. He chose to leave it in peace. He could just as easily have stripped it for valuables, which has happened more often than not. It's really up to who discovers the wreck. I heard something about a group who were talking about recovering part of the Titanic, but nothing since.
--Satan, quoted by John Milton
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Big Easy was naked while typing this:
That was actually a choice made by Dr. Ballard, who discovered the HMS Titanic. He chose to leave it in peace. He could just as easily have stripped it for valuables, which has happened more often than not. It's really up to who discovers the wreck. I heard something about a group who were talking about recovering part of the Titanic, but nothing since.
I remember reading in some book written by one of Ballard's teammates that he regretted revealing the position of the Titanic because people have been stripping artifacts from it ever since.
I also recall a documentary once where they raised a chunk of the hull.
*!Warning: Disregard everthing I post. The whiskey is probably speaking!*
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Bloodsage said this about your mom:
I thought Titanic was American-flagged?
Nope, RMS Titanic was British-flagged. From the Cunnard line. And it might have been a combination of Dr. Ballard deciding not to haul up any more artifacts and the fact there might be an interested insurance lurking about somewhere.
I also remember hearing something afoot about making the wreck an international cultural monument or some such thing. Which would then prohibit anybody taking anything from the wreck ever again.
