Fun Facts about Pirates!

Pirates are not just the subject of shitty movies. They are known as bloodthirsty amoral scoundrels, and they've certainly done a lot to warrant that opinion, but did you know:

1.They pioneered workman's compensation.
Pirates operated under a general code that varied from Captain to Captain, but most allowed for monetary compensation for lost limbs and some guaranteed continued employment after some injuries. This was the agreement for the pirate Henry Morgan(inspiration for Captain Morgan Rum): "Thus they order for the loss of a right arm six hundred pieces of eight, or six slaves ; for the loss of a left arm five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for a right leg five hundred pieces of eight, or five slaves ; for the left leg four hundred pieces of eight, or four slaves ; for an eye one hundred pieces of eight, or one slave ; for a finger of the hand the same reward as for the eye."
2.There were a few famous female pirates.
Anne Bonny dressed as a man to serve on her lover's ("Calico Jack" Rackham) ship The Revenge since the pirate rules forbid women on the ship. Mary Reade also hid her sex and served on the Revenge. The women had a reputation as such fierce fighters that it didn't make a difference when their sex was finally found out.
When Pirate hunters captured the Revenge, Anne and Mary were the only members of the crew to fight back, since most of the others were drunk on rum at the time. While the rest of the crew was sentenced to hang, Anne and Mary got a pass since both were pregnant at the time of sentencing.
3. Blackbeard knew how to work it.
He was one of the most feared pirates of all time. He stuck lit fuses in his beard to make himself look like a demon. Rumor had it that he would kill a crew member now and again because, "if he didn’t shoot one or two [crewmen] now and then, they’d forget who he was." still and all, there are no verified conformations that he killed any one.
4. Kids love pirates.
At the toy store every Halloween that I worked there, kids wanted to be pirates. Kids just dig 'em. After 9/11 parent said, "I bet kids want to be fireman and policeman", to which I would say, "Their parents do, they wanna be pirates." When a Star Wars or Spiderman movie came out there would be a shift towards those, but more kids wanted to still be pirates.
5. September 19th is "National Talk Like A Pirate Day".
You could freely say "Argh!" with out the fear of retribution.
6. Pirates still exist.
Check this out.