Right to Opine

Another day another hijacking. This time it’s a Saudi supertanker full of oil. Are we learning anything from these attacks? Apparently not, as there are more than a dozen pirated ships (and crews) still being held for ransom. Here’s the money quote:

Once pirates get aboard, however, the ship is theirs, because crews on commercial vessels are rarely armed, according to Mr. Choong and other maritime experts. “They are not mentally or physically fit enough to handle weapons,” he said.

Nor do many ship owners use armed contractors — seagoing mercenaries — to fight or ward off approaching pirates. Experts said crew safety and insurance liability were overriding concerns of captains and owners.

“We do not advocate this, having armed escorts on board,” said Lee Yin Mui, assistant director of research at the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships at Sea. Known as ReCAAP, the 16-nation network is based in Singapore.

“Armed escorts could only escalate the situation,” she said, “and perhaps trigger off heavy crossfire.”

Um, yeah. Or the rightful termination of said miscreants could persuade others to choose a different line of work. I’d like to see some evidence that ReCAAP is actually doing its job…combating piracy. The current situation indicates they’re encouraging more of the same.

To (reluctantly) quote Dr. Phil, “How’s that workin’ for ya?”

[Update]

Apparently not so well. This time it’s a shipment of wheat.