It is a standard law where I am from. Few find it stupid, though I will admit its application here has been heavy handed and far from preventing piracy their actions have served only to cause it.

[As the Doctor had said, the Navy could have tried diplomacy when people first arrived. It might have saved a great deal of trouble for everyone. ]

You will have to tell me just how you managed to make a magnet strong enough to inflict the kind of damage you are talking about.