The Somali Pirates are at it again, this time they have hijacked a U.S.-flagged cargo ship with some 20 Americans onboard in the the first pirate attack against Americans in 200 years. Luckily, the crew has been able to free themselves and the ship from pirate control, but the pirates still hold the ship’s captain as their only bargaining chip.

Are you kidding me? Aren’t pirates supposed to be the stuff of legend, those things that we get a good laugh at when we see them on the movie screen. They shouldn’t be endangering the lives of Americans who happened to be in the waters only to deliver food aid to Kenya.

The pirates have gone too far this time and I expect the reaction from the U.S. government to be swift and strong. The pirates are able to board these ships using small skiffs, grappling hooks, and small arms, while the U.S. military possesses laser guided bombs and stealth technology in its arsenal. We can’t allow this to happen any more, we need to send more warships to Somalian waters to make them safe.

Apparently, most merchant crews are “unarmed” and are sitting ducks in these waters — a policy that needs to change. The CEO of Maersk Line, John F. Reinhart made the following statement:

“The company policy is that crew members can use fire hoses to try to repel pirates who are using grappling hooks to climb the ship’s sides. But once the pirates have boarded, the crews are told to retreat to “safe rooms” because they have no weapons.”

Fire hoses?, are we serious, people? The pirates are laughing at us.

Right now, piracy is the most lucrative profession in Somalia, making it imperative that there is an effort made by the international community to work with the Somalian government to combat these efforts. If these efforts are unsuccessful, I see no other alternative than to fight fire with fire, and we have the much bigger gun.

The Maersk Alabama container ship, formerly Maersk Alva, was hijacked by pirates operating off the Horn of Africa. (AFP/Getty Images)

Uncategorized pirates, somalia