Guys

I heard the elders will control things in 1984 on the ground and I heard it again in 1992 as we spun up to go in for Restore Hope. Somali culture is not Arab and the elders are not sheikhs. The fracture of the traditional lines of authority is near complete. The pirates started with the fishing community but expanded after they started making millions. Big surprise that.

Destroying boats as a tactic is fine; recognize that the Somalis will buy, steal, or build more.

Developing Somali's economy to offset a loss of piracy is the same as offering potatoes as a crop substitute for opium in Afghanistan. Kinder, gentler perhaps but ineffective.

Afloat or ashore, some Somalis are going to get shot if this surge in piracy is to end. I had rather we use our naval and air advantage to dominate. Otherwise we might as well form convoys and pay the pirates for passage rights.

At least one shipping firm is stepping up:

Shipping company head wants to arm vessels against pirates

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The head of a shipping company recently victimized by pirates off the Somali coast told lawmakers Tuesday that U.S. cargo crews should be allowed to arm themselves in response to the rising hijacking threat.


In April, pirates attacked The Liberty Sun, a U.S.-flagged cargo ship, but were unable to board.

Philip Shapiro, head of Liberty Maritime Corp., told a U.S. Senate Commerce subcommittee that the owners of U.S.-flagged "have done all they can within the law to protect our crews."

Unfortunately, he said, U.S. vessels are still largely at the mercy of pirates in shipping lanes around the heavily trafficked Gulf of Aden.

"In light of the recent threats to U.S. merchant mariners, we respectfully request that Congress consider clearing the obstacles that currently block ship owners from arming our vessels," Shapiro said
And yes I know times are different. That does not mean that we have to mistake stupidity for civility. Civility without firepower in Somalia is truly stupid because they merely see it as an opportunity.

Best
Tom