damn cheap insurance... speaking of which, how long will it take LLoydes or who ever to raise rates for ships plying those waters??? if not already
Posted on 11/20/2008 4:22:21 PM PST by Jet Jaguar
Best answer yet.
damn cheap insurance... speaking of which, how long will it take LLoydes or who ever to raise rates for ships plying those waters??? if not already
Good one! LOL.
We remain a maritime nation highly dependent on shipborne commerce. Acting as if this isn’t so, doesn’t make it so.
See my previous, #44 just above.
No argument from me. My point is that we need only protect our interests, and nobody else's.
Who do you think "owns" patroling the seas to make them safe?
All nations dependent upon maritime commerce.
Which is why the Indians are pitching in rather effectively, at the moment.
And our interests are served in not allowing these piracy events to continue.
Blackwater will be on the job again...
Thanks. I think I understand your point. I do agree that the global economy, which includes our prosperity, depends on maritime commerce.
I think we need to look at this from an economic standpoint. If I purchase a shipment of cars in San Diego that were to be delivered from Serbia and the cars do not arrive, I do not pay. It is up to the Serbian company or the shipping company to ensure the goods make it to San Diego. The Serbian company probably had their goods insured, so it behooves the shipping company to ensure that the goods make it and should "purchase" protection. They have the most to lose.
Alternatively, the US could provide "protection" to all inbound ships (goods to be sold in the US) and all outbound ships (US goods to be sold globally), but that would be very expensive and tantamount to patroling the seas. Further, it usually is the manufacturer's responsibility to get the products to the market, so at best the US should only provide protection to outbound ships. I could live with this, but again, the US is providing protection for ships that are most likely to be flagged by other countries.
The most efficient approach is to let each shipping company determine how to protect itself. Their own navy may be able to do this. Or perhaps, they would purchase protection from the US navy, or perhaps get a third party, similar to Blackwater.
My concern is that the US is being asked to be the ocean's police, and this is not a task we can cheaply accomplish.
These people have lived a life of violence. It's been kill or be killed from the day they could hold a gun. They know no other way.
They would respond to this level of violence and realize that there must be something better and go back to raping goats or whatever passes for normal behavior in that 3rd world cesspool.
The Indians will have two new carriers in the next 5 years and will retire the older British conversion, the Viraat, that they have been operating for many, many years. They already have the other assets necessary to escort and support them.
We need to declare war on these pirates amd deal with them harshly, absolutely and completely wiping them out. Several internaltional Surface Action groups (SAGs) led by the US with German, UK, Italian, INdian, and other vessels, should literally flood the waters and take them down while providing escort duties to all high value vessels tranisting the area...bring back the concept of convoys if necessary until the problem is dealt with.
Our Sea Lift vessels, while not having large armaments, do have well armed security detachments aboard them and they are apparently enough to ward off these small arms and RPG attacks. A few SAWS, a couple of fifty caliber machine guns and small arms are generally sufficient.
It is inexcusable, IMHO, to have a large tanker of 300,000 tons hijacked by such brigands.
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