Many Americans have watched the movie Pirates of the Caribbean and its sequels; enjoying the entertainment value, performance of Johnny Depp; and excitement in the movies. I am one of them. However, that does not mean we, individually or as a nation, condone having our people robbed, taken hostage and killed by modern day pirates; specifically, the Somali Pirates, the scourge of the world, as Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton made reference to.

What should we do about this continuing problem? I have seen reference made to Black Hawk Down, a name associated with a reported fiasco during President Bill Clinton’s time in office. However, the truth of the matter is that the mission which involved approximately 450 American Soldiers was actually a success. The Rangers did exactly what they set out to do with precision and accuracy. From a military standpoint that mission was a resounding success. What we need to remember though, is that we were actually in a different posture at that time. Then, we were engaged in a peace-keeping endeavor and the event a subsequent movie was made about was a rescue mission. Now, is a different time.

Somali has been and continues to be a largely lawless state. The native inhabitants actively engage in piracy on the open seas. This area, the horn of Africa, is mostly desert; encompassing a land mass about three times the State of Kansas. The leaders of the country have done nothing to stop the ongoing piracy. If they are not explicitly supportive, they are at a minimum, complicit in harboring and providing sanctuary for these pirates. To me, this clearly indicates that trying to negotiate with the pirates will serve no good, except for the good of the pirates and maybe the officials in Somali.

The United States possesses superior technology and our highly trained Special Forces posses the capability of going in to the region on a mission to eradicate this problem, once and for all. I know this position may not be the politically correct stand; however, if you look at who the Somali allies are, you will discover names like Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda have the propensity to pop up. From the time we were young we have been told that people are judged by the company they keep. It is also an axiom that talk, as always, is cheap. The acts of piracy are akin to the acts of terrorists and terrorist groups. For all intent and purpose, they are tantamount to the same. Accordingly, pirates and terrorists should be treated the same. Maybe I should clarify that. Invading a country that we SUSPECT of some wrongdoing, is not the same as using our resources to locate terrorists and eradicating the problem where we find them, even if that means invading those geographical locations where sanctuary is being provided. When people’s lives hang in the balance, as is the current situation we find ourselves a party to; and when terror and acts of piracy are being condoned and moreover, being given sanctuary, it becomes a matter of asking those responsible, “Are you with us, or against us?”

I believe we have every right to prepare for and deliver a tactical strike. I believe an effective option would be to move in and give these opportunistic zealots 30 minutes to unboard and set their hostages free, or take a good look around, because this will be the last day all of you will see this port … How we deal with those in positions of power in Somali, is dependent upon whether they are with us, or against us. We are told these terrrorist pirates want us to believe they are simply businessmen. Well, without minimizing that proposition, and assuming arguendo, they are businessmen, then you must also ask them if they are willing to pay the price today, to see tomorrow. We certainly wouldn”t coddle them, if they were local thugs who kidnapped and held hostages for ransom. How would we handle a hostage crisis here in the United States? You need, of course, to consider who you might be trying to negotiate with. Well, we know what we are dealing with in terrorist pirates. Here, stateside, we would send in SWAT, use sharpshooters, or whatever other means necessary; but you don’t hear about negotiators going in and having success with whackos and zealots. Remember Waco? (Some refer to Waco as a siege rather than a hostage situation, but coercion and duress are other topics to factor in, that go beyond the scope of this post) However, you don’t have to go too far back to find another hostage crisis that was handled quickly; and without negotiating. Remember Jiverly Wong and the Binghamton NY shootings earlier this month? No negotiating there. This situation in Somali has been brewing for some time. They continue to be the ambassadors of a lawless region and I remember Vice President Joseph Biden, before the election, say that President Obama would be tested in this manner, during his first ninety days. Well, he wasn’t too far off. Now, I think the President is in the position to make a decision whether or not, to fish or to cut bait.

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