Monday, April 13, 2009

Three Shots Sound in the Horn of Africa

What began as another pirate takeover escalated into a hostage situation and was then overexposed by the media, sensationalized in the press and eventually played out minute-by-minute on virtually every news TV show. Sounds familiar, huh? Well, yes, it is, but it was a bit different this time.

The difference is this is the first time our President has been faced with a national security issue, and I think it was handled with patience and confidence in the armed forces. What else makes it different is that the pirates off the Horn of Africa may just become a new threat to the world, while the one-time threats/perceived enemies in North Korea and Iran calm slightly. The tension is rising out there, and I believe this will be the first in a long string of well-publicized incidents that will be carefully dealt with by governments all around the globe. These pirates are demanding they be treated as a whole entity, essentially a country or territory unto themselves, and a government all their own--negating any rules and regulations of the sea, Africa, Somalia, Yemen, Oman or Kenya.

While I try at all times to stay unbiased in my politics, and always try to view both sides of the argument, I think this is pretty straight-forward and means we'll see escalated tensions, attacks, and a new 'war on terror' in that area. I think most countries of the world, including some that may still be considered our 'enemies,' i.e. Iran, however, would agree that a military/naval presence by several countries in that area to protect ships, innocent citizens/sailors, and prized commodity and food/aid shipments is very necessary and will only be beneficial in the long run. There may be some battles, but I think it's the only way to prevent such a threat from swelling to the point where it turns into a war. I know it may be biased to some, and may go against human rights issues/opinions, but it seems the only viable option.

What do you think?

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