The Problem with Pirates

[justgin1228]

I just don't get it.  Why is it that, in this day and age, a bunch of idiots from Somalia can just board any ship or boat of their choosing, point guns at the owner's heads, and make ransom demands, so much so that the USA has to sit up and take notice and action?  This solution is so obvious here: give everyone on board a lifejacket and a GUN

Comments

[jordan179]

There seems to be this fear that if the merchantmen start shooting back the situation will "escalate," which ignores the reality that it is "escalating" already, and will continue to "escalate" until piracy is rendered no longer profitable by the imposition of consequences on the pirates. One such set of consequences would be wounds and death delivered by merchant mariners defending their vessels.

The merchant mariners would be at a major advantage, because merchant ships are much bigger than the pirates -- they can absorb a lot more damage. A very few hits with a medium-caliber (20mm-57mm) gun would suffice to cripple or sink the typical pirate vessel, while it would take torpedoes or SSM's to reliably sink anything as large as are most merchantmen.

If it escalated into a war of commerce destruction rather than capture, the civilized nations would have an immense advantage, because they could deprive the entire Somali coast of its shipping and basing capabilities in a campaign lasting at most one or two weeks. This would be

[justgin1228]

"....In either case the problem would end."

Exactly! :D

[justgin1228]

"There seems to be this fear that if the merchantmen start shooting back the situation will 'escalate,' which ignores the reality that it is 'escalating' already...."

That reminds me of a saying: Whatever you compromise to keep, you will lose.

[justgin1228]

We might see a change in attitudes after this mess with the pirates.