Saturday, February 19, 2011
Pirates grab Americans, Obama "mulls"
Pirates have grabbed four Americans, and we are "mulling" our response.
Dear President Obama: Wine may be mulled, but the response to piracy is well-settled.
Even the French know what must be done.
Black shadows emerging from the sea would have been the only warning of the fate that awaited seven pirates aboard their captured yacht off Somalia early yesterday morning.
Struggling awake, they found themselves staring at the barrels of assault weapons belonging to soldiers from the underwater combat unit of France’s elite special forces.
Not once, but twice.
One French hostage has died and four others have been freed in a rescue operation by French troops on a yacht off Somalia, French officials say.
Two pirates were killed in the operation and three were captured, the French presidency said.
At least while Sarko is president, pirates who mess with the blue, white, and red die. But are they equally afraid of the red, white, and blue? Deterrence has failed, President Obama, what is your next move?
MORE: To be clear, we applauded President Obama's use of snipers to rescue the captain of the Maersk Alabama, and hope and expect that he will respond similarly in this case. That does not change the fact that deterrence has failed, and we have not yet responded.
8 Comments:
By 
Mystery Meat, at
Sat Feb 19, 12:14:00 PM:
Didn't he dispatch a SEAL sniper team to free the American captain of an American-flagged ship last year? If in the instant case the pirates and hostages are still at sea, I suspect there is a high probability of another rescue attempt.
By JPMcT, at
Sat Feb 19, 01:17:00 PM:
The use of the Seal sniper team and successful rescue were IN SPITE OF the Obama team's oversight rather than a direct order, according to a few friends I know with military connections. There was considerable foot dragging...then unexpected rapid gunplay, after which the mice who were "managing" the response took credit for the bravery of the men with boots on the ground. Typical.
What more do you expect from a man who has blatantly said, "When the chips are down I will side with the Muslims."
He may not be a Muslin...but he plays one on TV!!!
By 
, at
Sat Feb 19, 07:36:00 PM:
The Kenyan must invite the other pirates over for a chat and a cold beer, assuming that muslims can drink beer. That's the solution!!
By , at
Sun Feb 20, 10:55:00 AM:
Obama = Carter II
I was in college when the Iranians in an act of war stormed our embassy and took U.S. citizens hostage.
I wanted to see our strong response. Carter waited weeks and then came out with a statement saying he was considering our alternatives.
By , at
Sun Feb 20, 06:15:00 PM:
President Obama "used snipers" to "rescue the captain of the Maesk Alabama"? That's news. JPMcT has it right, and the Navy acted despite the White House inaction and not because of a WH order, based on the news account cited in E81's own post.
By , at
Tue Feb 22, 09:30:00 AM:
"deterrence has failed and we have not responded"
What is Obama suppose to do? Storm the ship? Before or after the hostages are killed?
If, as the above commenters claim the Navy SEALS acted unilaterally in 2010 without WH input, than why isn't the Navy "responding" again this time while the WH mulls?
By , at
Tue Feb 22, 09:54:00 AM:
So, now that they're all reported to have been executed, let's see if the Kenyan grows a pair and has our Navy boys grease the lot of them. Honestly, I have very mixed feelings about the military protected idiots who knowingly sail thru those waters, but this (shooting them while our military was allegedly negotiating) cannot be condoned.
By Dawnfire82, at
Tue Feb 22, 12:51:00 PM:
I believe I advocated the raid and destruction of pirate installations in Somalia two years ago. At the time, it would have been preventative or deterrent action. Now it would be retaliatory or punitive. Still support it, though. A little gunboat diplomacy goes a long way in Africa.
