I wonder how much of a threat piracy really is?
According to this report:
Piracy has flourished off the coast of Somalia, which has not had an effective government for two decades. While piracy in the Indian Ocean has taken place for a number of years close to the Somali coast, "in 2008 we saw a very marked and rapid shift into the Gulf of Aden, where Somali pirates were attacking and hijacking vessels very, very regularly," Cyrus Mody said (an official with the International Maritime Bureau in London).
International navies combating piracy have been fairly successful in setting up a patrolled transit corridor through the Gulf of Aden, Mody and Fox said. But the pirates' activities then shifted into the southern Red Sea, Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea area, Mody said.
In addition, there was "a very large increase" in pirate attacks between 2008 and 2009, although the increase did not continue into 2010. Mody said. He noted that in the first few months of 2010, virtually no pirate hijackings were reported. So far in 2011, "we have already seen more than 50 attacks carried out," he said. "From 2008, what we've seen is they have evolved ... and increased their capabilities."
http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/02/22/somalia.us.yacht/index.html?hpt=C1
I must say that I don't greatly fear a pirate attack. I don't intend on sailing around the world in my 70 foot yacht, even if I had one!! I feel that the only reason this story made it into mainstream media is because it deals with the military and the rich elite. The majority of us Americans do not have a yacht, or even any kind of boat. The threat to us being attacked by pirates is very small. Another point is that who doesn't love a good pirate story? Look at all of the movies that have been made concerning piracy. It has been found that such danger and intrigue sells, so the media covered a story that they thought would get some positive attention.
ReplyDeleteIt's the 'it will never happen to me' attitude that got them into trouble in the first place. Although it appears as though the Adams "were conscious of pirate threats and were concerned about boating in the area," they didn't seem to be too fearful of a pirate attack, either; choosing to sail off-course into dangerous waters anyways. But look what happened. This story has nothing to do with the rich elite, and little to do with the military. The fact that the four people KILLED (remember, crime is what SELLS in the media) were United States citizens, plus the media's infatuation with story-linkage (this is certainly not the first time this has happened, even to U.S. citizens), is why I believe this story was front page nationwide. Is piracy a huge threat? No. But it happens frequently enough to draw a fair amount of media coverage...and who knows, maybe the media's coverage of this situation may actually bring the attention it needs to start fixing the problem and saving American lives, because you never know...those could be your relatives out there on their FIFTY-EIGHT foot yacht next time...
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