Thread: Now We're in Trouble!

Originally Posted by jnich67

I understand what you're saying, but at the end of the day, we'll end up paying for the security through higher prices...It will be passed along.

Jordan

and the ransom payments wouldn't be passed on to the consumer as well?

as long as we're going to have to indirectly foot the bill for something, i'd rather it be making the world a better place by ridding it of some vile, hostage-taking pirates.

[quote=Slartibartfast;362479]Listening to the radio this morning...

This is me paraphrasing...

1) Due to internal treaties/laws/whatever, these ships are not allow to have armed crewman. If they did arm, they would not be able to dock in some ports. This is why the security has to be hired guns who are not members of the crew.

2) the percentage of ships that get hijacked is very very low and shipping companies dont want to spend the money\

3) the companies say it is the job of the governments to keep the waters safe This is true. That is why waters off the coast of some countries are safe. However, in a place where there is no recognizable government and the people walking on the streets aren't safe, how can anyone expect that country's coastline to be patrolled?

Originally Posted by jockeys

and the ransom payments wouldn't be passed on to the consumer as well?

as long as we're going to have to indirectly foot the bill for something, i'd rather it be making the world a better place by ridding it of some vile, hostage-taking pirates.

I agree with you - I would rather pay the guards too. But I would think the cost of a few trained men on each of thousands of ships (based on what contractors in Iraq make, with expenses, maybe $100K+ per year each?) is going to be a lot more than the cost of the insurance they're paying now. If it wasn't, I think the shipping companies would have done it already. I don't know the scale involved here -how many ships would have to be manned? I'm happy to have my opinion changed on this one.

Jordan

Piracy used to be a joke. Now it isn't any more. Ships/companies/countries that do something to deal with the problem are likely to be better off than those that ignore it.

I see an opportunity. It's often said that war is an effective way to boost an economy. The world economy is in a poor state right now. Let's declare war on the pirates. It would be better than a "real" war because there would no need to invade foreign land, and you rarely get innocent civillians creeping up on unsuspecting supertankers, so no innocent casualties of war. It's a win-win strategy.

They don't need them their whole journey just through the pirate risk regions. Either relay them from ship to ship as needed (both ways) or have the ships group up and run escorts with a convoy. Either way something will have to be done or these guys will just get bolder and bolder.

Originally Posted by TomSD

They don't need them their whole journey just through the pirate risk regions. Either relay them from ship to ship as needed (both ways) or have the ships group up and run escorts with a convoy. Either way something will have to be done or these guys will just get bolder and bolder.

And get more and better firepower with the millions of ransom dollars they're apparently receiving.

Chris L

It's learned behavior and risk/reward evaluation.

Every time they get away with it you end up with a more experienced pirate that is better funded. You also end up with other desperate people seeing what this pirate did and figuring "why not, he did it".

On the other hand every pirate you capture or kill is one less experienced pirate out there and those other desperate individuals that might be thinking about joining the pirate ranks will think twice. Especially if you NEVER pay out a reward. If nobody every receives a reward for capturing a ship and holding it hostage then there is no reason for them to try.

Originally Posted by icedog

There are no "mother ships". The pirates are independants with smalls boats and small arms who have found that shipping companies will pay dearly for the return of an experienced crew and/or skipper. They are impossible to differentiate from the hundreds of other small boats fishing in the area until they attack. They made a huge mistake when they took the skipper of an American flagged vessel. Our Navy is in business to protect that ship. We are not going to run a security service for the rest of the world's merchant vessels.

The solution is for a shipping company to pay for armed security on board each ship they send into "dangerous" waters. A half dozen pirates with AK-47's and RPG's in a small boat can overtake and board any ship that has no one shooting back. One man standing a topside watch can alert the rest of a crew to draw arms and repel boarders. Even two people with shotguns from a protected, elevated position can put down any attack from a small boat.

Question: The fourth pirate, the one who went to the destroyer to "negotiate" for the American captain. Was he happy when the shooting went down? Was he surprised? Or, was he the smart one who knew the American Navy wasn't going to play around much longer but didn't want to look like a sissy in front of the other three clowns?

Brad

The solution is to sink them all and let God (or Allah as the case may be) sort them out.

It is my understading that there ARE "motherships" where there is more covered area (the motorboats are open...not what you want to be a few hundred miles out for days at a time in), and the range to tow the speedboats out into the hunting grounds.
Piracy insurance exists, accoridning to the Dow Jones News Service. It costs 30-50K for 3-5 million in coverage for a single trip through this area. If private security can be had for less than this amount, miight this not be the better "buy" economically speaking for the shipping companies? Also, even if it is MORE expensive, after a few years of being violently and permanantly repelled by armed guards...I think the rate of piracy would go down a bit, too!

Yes there are mother ships or base ships or whatever you want to call them. If you search the news you will see where some have been taken down. The last one I remember reading was the Indian Navy sinking one.

As for the whole bottom line ransom vs security and such. I don't care if it costs more. It is stupid to bow to the demands of bullies it just emboldens them.