From the New York Times:
Is there any reason to think we’ll get militarily involved in the rescue of this ship? Should we? Will the US Navy (and administration) follow the typical path of allowing the private (Danish) owners to pay off the pirates in cash?
Just curious to hear people’s opinions on how the US should be handling this.
…to the shores of Tripoli…!
Deploy a carrier group, wipe them out.
Amen. This is a big part of what the Navy and Marine were built for, from day one. These pirates need to be taught that, while we may not bother for foreign-crewed ships, laying a finger on Americans means death. Period.
No reason not to kick some ass - pirates have been hostii humanii generis, the common enemies of mankind, since ancient Rome. (In fact, if memory serves Pompey rose to prominence through his campaign to clear the Mediterranean of pirates.)
I like the sentiment - but that’s a bit of overkill. Try “deploy a frigate, wipe them out.”
Well…the reason to not go in guns blazing are the lives of 20 Americans on the ship who stand a good chance of getting killed. I have faith in the abilities of SEALs to get in there and wipe out the pirates but I am hard pressed to imagine how they could do so and rescue the hostages. A ship is a labyrinth kinda thing with steel doors and the like. The pirates are going to be aware of the SEALs coming through the ship LONG before the SEALs could stop them from gunning down all the hostages.
I’m all for kicking pirate ass but this needs to be considered.
What I am curious about is how all these pirate ships manage to roam about unnoticed? I understand that the ocean is a big place but I thought modern technology had left huge blind spots as a thing of the past. Submarines can track ships via the noise they make from great ranges and are very good at this. Satellite photos, unmanned drones, AWACS, helicopters, planes and so on can cover huge swaths of area. They are unaware of a ship 300 miles away? Could a Russian aircraft carrier get within 300 miles of them unnoticed? I doubt it so why can’t they spot these guys?
Maybe they were spotted, but didn’t “look suspicious”.
There’s thousands of ships (from small sail powered fishing boats to large freighters and warships) that sail the region off the horn of Africa every day.
Most of it being international waters, they all have a right to be there. Even if you had a couple dozen warships pulling UN sanctioned random inspections, you can only inspect so many ships a day.
If I recall, the best anti-piracy strategy in the classic age of piracy was to clear out the home ports (as well as the ports known for fencing pirate goods).
I know jack-all about naval tracking technology but I’d assume a speedboat full of Somali pirates or its fishing vessel sized “mother ship” leaves a smaller footprint than a Russian aircraft carrier.
These guys had to know what they were doing when they grabbed a ship flying the stars and stripes and so I’d guess they’re on “high alert” with the ship & hostages. On the other hand, they’re apparently not afraid enough of the consequences to keep them from hijacking a US ship/crew.
Spoken like someone who hasn’t played the first mission in Rainbow Six Rogue Spear. 
What most amazes me is that there are reportedly only about 1,000 pirates and the Somali government allows foreign forces to chase them in Somali waters. Even I can figure that the boats originate from the shoreline. Rather than pay $150,000,000 a year in ransoms why not invest it to eliminate them. They’re not hiding in Kansas.
I believe the lion’s share of the ransom money is paid out by private companies who’d rather pay $1 million to get their $10 million boat back than have people shooting RPGs at it. It’s not the governments paying out $150mil.
And I don’t think there is a real government in Somalia. Certainly not one that can project its power off its coastline.
The problem, as I understand it, is that there is a lot of traffic in the area. And the pirates don’t exactly fly the Skull and Crossed Bones flag and go ARRRRGGGGHHHH! Unless you patrol the area constantly (which would be expensive), it’s fairly easy for them to nip in and take the occasional boat, then get the hell out of dodge with their prize and hide.
So…no nation has been willing (up until now) to expend the kind of effort it would take in order to put a long term military presence in the region that would stop or at least deter the pirates. Perhaps now the US will do so.
And I think it WOULD take a carrier group…or at least a task force. The reason is that while it’s true even one of our destroyers could rip up any pirate every born, it can’t be in all places at once. You can’t just shoot up every suspicious boat, nor just wade into a Somalia port or village and start shooting up the place. The pirates don’t wear big signs saying ‘Im a Pirate!’ on their chests after all…and they sort of blend in with the natives, being FROM there after all.
So…I agree the US should probably do something, especially now that one of our own ships with US citizens have been taken. But I don’t think it will be nearly as easy as just sending in a ship to sink the pirates…and I don’t think this would take only a couple or days or the odd month either. I think that IF we do this it’s going to be a commitment that might be years…and will certainly cost us more than the $15 mil in ransom.
That said, as someone up thread mentioned, this is what the Marines and Navy were originally designed for…it was their original job. The whole ‘millions for defense but nothing for tribute’ thingy (of course, we ended up paying them off anyway, but it’s the principal of the thing).
-XT
What Somali government? There isn’t one and hasn’t been for 18 years or so.
Pay the $3 million-get these guys out, then send a cruise missile to the port the pirates use. Flatten it.
Anybody now how much marine insurance rates have increased becuase of these pirate’s activities?
I call that the Julius Caesar Option 
I often ask myself WWJCD? crucify the bastards!.
And what about all the non-pirates in the port?
-XT
BREAKING NEWS!
Crew retook ship from the pirates! One pirate captured.
No cite…seeing it on CNBC now.
ETA: Cite - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30103371/
Wow awesome.
There is one particular city that is a haven for pirates in Somalia. That would be a good place to start. I don’t recall the name offhand.
Eggs, omelets, all that.
Seriously, that’s the issue. As noted, we have more than enough firepower to take out any pirates. But it’s a sledgehammer solution to the flyswatter problem. The days of “punitive expeditions” are long gone.
Considering our “track record” with Somalis, I’d hesitate to trust this administration to handle the situation properly.
Not that I’d really trust the previous administration to do much better, either.
Isn’t there some sort of international treaty forbidding commercial vessels from arming themselves? That’s one possible solution. Put some twin-.50 cals in cupolas along the rails and some “shooters” to man them, and your pirate problem goes away, at least for a while.
Barring oil tankers or LNG carriers, a handfull of RPGs are still going to be like BBs against an ocean-going cargo vessel. Yachts, cruise ships, and smaller commercial vessels are another matter, of course.
Awesome news about the crew (if confirmed… let’s hope).
So now I guess the question is whether or not the US will take this as a catalyst for starting a new phase in solving the pirate problem or if this will let us return to the status quo.