Enough is Enough, Already

Right now, about two dozen Americans are being held hostage at sea by a band of opportunistic Somali pirates, the latest in a string of such incidents off the African coast.

(UPDATE: Reports are coming in that the crew was able to take the ship back!!)

This time, however, these are Americans -- I think it's about time the United States Navy gets involved and teaches these children that the adults are in charge, and that there are consequences to such misbehavior.

Why? Why risk the loss of life? Why risk the chance that these pirates will execute American hostages as they await ransom money?

Because on November 30, 2008, similar pirates made a move on the M/V Nautica, an American cruise ship moving its way through the Gulf of Aden. Think about that for a moment. These pirates aren't out to make a political statement, they aren't out to use the boats they hijack -- they're doing what they're doing for money, and money alone. And, so far, it has worked. Piracy has become a cash-heavy industry in Somalia, with pirates having taken more than $80 million in the past year or so, and without true opposition the practice will continue.

What's to stop these people from making another attempt on a crowded cruise ship full of innocent men, women and children? Surely, the ransom would be tempting for people motivated not by ideology or politics but by necessity and by greed. Surely, given what we saw less than a dozen gunmen do in Mumbai, a self-contained cruise ship would be the softest of soft targets. Or even worse, because of that thirst for money, what's to stop these pirates from simply acting as paid courier for people who are motivated by ideology, who wouldn't simply want to take hostages and wait for ransom money to be parachuted in?

The outbreak of piracy off the African coast is already a problem for freight and shipping companies worldwide. Seeing that these people have no problem hijacking a ship flying the Red, White and Blue, I think it's high time on the high seas to teach these pirates a lesson.