The solution seems to have been the opposite of “gun control.” Evidently many ships are (dare we say it) fighting back by hiring (oh no!) ARMED GUARDS!
Schools and merchant ships are the exact opposite though. Schools are on land, ships at sea. Schools are full of children who are there to learn, ships full of adults applying what they know. Most important: schools are bastions of political correctness, ships subject to the immediate effects of reality. Schools will not admit that announcing that any armed criminal will be the only armed person present is less effective than announcing that any armed criminal will be the least well-armed person present.