PIRATES – AFTER ALL THEY HAVE DONE FOR THE WORLD, SHOULDN’T THE WORLD DO SOMETHING FOR THEM?

One of the ugliest and oldest professions is occurring with ever greater frequency.

Piracy!!

I cannot quote exact numbers, but they are available – and piratical events are already this year at least twice the number of such events all last year.

I think something in the area of 80+ incidents.

The ships attacked, the ones that make the msm, are freighters carrying grain, oil, and munitions.

Private yachts have been taken as well.

The motive apparently is to take the vessel and hold it and the crew and the cargo for ransom.

It appears that the ransoms are usually paid; that the cargoes are returned; the hostages are often well treated; and that usually few or none of th perps are ever caught.
Indeed, the perps are alleged to be living the good life in the coastal towns.

The British Navy has engaged a pirate vessel recently. And the Indian Navy has done so on at least two occasions, sinking one pirate 'mother ship'.

It is alleged that naval forces are spread too thinly to effectively suppress the piratical activity, and that there is some fuzziness about u.n. resolutions and what can be done with pirates when they are taken into custody.

One suggestion we find especially appealing here at The Study is to organize convoys of freighters in the high risk areas and escort the vessels through threatened waters.

If national navies cannot do the job, then there are private contractors which are reliable and capable. One which comes to mind is Blackwater Worldwide.

Blackwater is testifying as to this possibility this or next week in Washington. And Blackwater has developed an escort vessel prototype which would be just the thing to discourage barbarian attacks off the African coast – or whatever coast presented a problem.
Convoys under escort would be invulnerable to pirate attack, and the cost of the escort would be far less than the escalating ransom and insurance costs which are mounting at an alarming rate.

Flaming liberals will doubtless have a hairy at this solution – but that is to be expected and hopefully can be dealt with by responsible authorities.

Regarding what to do with the pirates?

Piracy used to be a hanging offense. I wonder when that excellent practice went by the boards.

Ideally, pirates will be prevented form taking their booty, thus denying them hostages.

Ideally, they will be killed during the interdiction.

If captured, they can be tried and executed – rapidly, tried by courts created for the purpose.

Such courts should not originate in the u.n. unless the courts are prepared to carry out the kind of traditional maritime law which will discourage/suppress the seagoing robbery, murder, and kidnapping.

That kind of law is trial and expeditions execution. No imprisonment.
No muss. No fuss.

This should be a lesson to flaming libs: crime will flourish where there is no law.

There currently is little or no law in the shipping lanes currently under pirate attack.

Those shipping lanes are vital to the security of nations, important nations.

Pirates are important too. They deserve the attention of major nations.

They should be given what they deserve.