I find it rather interesting that one of our WORST traits as a society is that we think in terms of individual victory. In effect, we lose to the very same mindset that allowed us to defeat the native Americans time after time.
These people want to win the war. They are going to live how they want and anything that annoys them, or threat to their lifestyles will be made to pay. All they have to do is make us "think" that going after them is not worth the time, manpower and money, and they win.
Some people understand nothing but force. Unfortunately, we seem to be overpopulated with the ones that can't grasp that simple concept.
one of the few times you and I agree completely on something. Ok, so now the pirates are saying that they will kill hostages. Well, d'uh! Ok, so this is the scenario: Pirates take hostages and kill them. Result? Definitely no ransom, and dead pirates. My money is on the US Navy winning this one in the end...easily too...
You make an important point. The pirates are hijacking ships for for money, and they know they will not get ransom money for dead hostages. They will continue to attack shipping, since it is so easy to take a ship adn has been so lucrative.
They currently hold 13 or 14 ships with about 250 hostages. Many of the hostages are Philipino crewmen.
Merchant shippers are like any business, trying to pinch pennies to make a profit. They have known for years and months that sailing those waters is risky, yet they continue to take that risk without adding security, except naval patrols. Out of the 28,000 ships that pass those straits each year, only a small percentage actually get attacked. Merchants are playing the odds, avoiding costs, taking their chances.
Arming and building bunkers on ships costs a lot of money. Security details cost a lot of money.
Fuel costs money. Insurance companies and merchant regulators need to pressure the shippers, financially and through licensing, to add security.
The navies need to deter the pirates, attack some known pirate bases. COs need to have stronger policing authority, to seize and search and pursue authority. They need to hunt and sink the pirates crappy mother ships.
Send in marines, occupy a couple key bases, fortify them, take a few of their tribal and business leaders into custody, start talking to the pirate leaders from a position of strength.
Such action will either require getting authority and agreement from the UN, or just going in and doing it with countries who have already been involved.
The US Fifth Fleet currently operates 2 Combined Task Forces, mixed collection of international military vessels. It has a lot of firepower at its disposal.
Detailed discussions about going on the offensive have been taking place among those and other nations that have contributed ships to the patrols. The discussions are not so much "if", but when and where, the mission goals and logistics, and by whom.
The shipping companies are still negotitating, want to pay the ransoms, want to get those innocent hostages and captured ships returned, safely.
Paying ransom would actually be less expensive than military missions. But the pirates won't stop hijacking ships in one of the world's most important and highly travelled shipping lanes.
All vessels, large and small, are at risk in those waters.
Pirates have made it clear they aren't going to simply stop.
