Bones on Land and on Sea

Piracy prevails along the coast of Somalia with UN chartered freighters carrying food and other relief supplies to the coastal regions coming under attack. The real skull and bones left behind on land by the feuding war lords are continuing to grow in number, as in-fighting to gain control supersedes the lives. One ship was released today, but another remains at this time under the control of the modern day pirates who use speed boats to run down and attack the slower moving freighters.

What are the warlords of the sea seeking? Not food for their people. They are seeking ransom money in which to buy more weaponry and technology to outmanuever authorities and take over control of the government. The same thing that they were seeking back in the 90's, when we tried to help. The Somalia government is pleading for help. What do they want? Money. To outfit their coastguard. So they can fight the pirates. Nearly twenty years of starving their own people to death and all these people think about is money. And power.

Should we help? The interim (now that has a really sound ring to it, doesn't it?) Somalian government is claiming that these pirates pose an international threat to the shipping lines along the coast. To date the only ships attacked have been freighters from the same contractor, two of which carried UN relief supplies. This scenario reeks. Only one contractor is bringing in supplies, and is repeatedly attacked. Speedboats are conveniently intercepting them. The last I looked the coast of Somalia was located on a pretty big body of water. The range of a speedboat can't possibly be very far. How is it that these pirates are able to zero in on the freighters locations, board, and demand ransoms? This smells of collusion. And another UN cuckholding.

It's time to stop the aide. It's time to stop enabling the power struggle. Cut the country off. Make them walk their own plank.

Thanks for the link: Stop the ACLU