The People You Didn't Expect to Be Talking Like Pirates Today

Cats, Somalis, Republicans and Utahans make Sept. 19 a special, tiresome day

It was a fine showing for International Talk Like a Pirate Day today: the increasingly-hallowed September 19 event that affords the toiling masses of white collar stooges to let their skull and bones flag fly, saying things like "ahoy, matey" and "arr" around the water cooler. Today had some odd participants you might not expect out of an Internet nerd movement, so let's get started on today's moonlighting pirates:

Republicans Not letting a strategic opportunity go to waste, Florida Republican Congressman Dennis Ross used Talk Like a Pirate day to assail the president's deficit speech. "Perhaps the Pres misunderstood. It is TALK like a pirate day.. not ACT like one. Watch ye purses & bury yr loot, the taxman cometh #humor." A tip for the Congressman, if you have to stipulate #humor, you're doing something wrong.*

Cats Right on point, Buzz Feed rounds up 20 cats feeling extra pirate-like today.

Journalists Ok, nothing surprising about newshounds flaunting their meme cred. Firing off the first shot, Hotline's Reid Wilson got the day started early wishing everyone a "happy Talk Like a Pirate day," earning him a kindly retweet by NBC News' Chuck Todd. Slate's Dave Weigel used the opportunity to make a Goldman Sachs quip "'Hi, my name is Lloyd Blankfein.' #TalkLikeAPirateDay." Tekzilla host Veronica Belmont was rather fatigued. "Today is Talk Like A Pirate Day, and I just can't seem to mustARRRR the enARRRRRgy. #sorry #arrrr" with Search Engine Land editor Danny Sullivan agreeing "i'm too tired to talk like a pirate today. matey."

Somali Pirates Celebrating the holiday in his own unique way, Richard Wheeler at Wired breaks down the linquistics of actual, real-life pirates from Somalia. "What languages are these pirates saying? Based on the IMB’s reported risk zones, and country data for Somalia from the CIA’s World Factbook, they are probably speaking in Somali, Arabic (probably a Yemeni dialect), Italian (a vestige of Somalia’s colonial heritage) or English," he says.  [photo, Wikimedia Commons]

Utahans That's right, our friendly Americans in the Beehive State are highly observant of the holiday, The Salt Lake Tribune tells us. "Even in landlocked Utah, there be folks eager to celebrate the glorious holiday," notes Sean Means. This includes eyepatch making at the Salt Lake County Library ("a pirate movie will be screened"), the local comic book store is holding its "first annual pirate-day party" and the Weber Country Library is telling pirate stories with "a chance to make your own treasure."

*In a tweet, Congressman Ross justifies his humor hashtag: "Cmon @John_Hudson #humor was to dissuade some followers who take life way too seriously. We in Tampa know our pirates #gasparilla." A fair point!