Shows of Force Are Theater of the Absurd

Amid talk of Somalian piracy the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt hove into Table Bay at Cape Town South Africa. Ninety-seven thousand or so tons of warship whose planes could distribute more death and destruction than all the air forces of all the combatants of World War II without emptying its "special weapons" stores.

And about as relevant to the problem of piracy off Somalia as a harpsichord to a fish.

While the port call of the Teddy R. might have had some vague use in our relations with South Africa, it has no utility in the waters off Somalia.

There is already a plethora of US force in the aforementioned troubled waters. Six, count them, SIX US Navy warships of assorted sizes, descriptions and capacities are within ten miles of the Ukrainian ro-ro and its cargo of tanks. Undoubtedly this small armada has lots of lethal force at its disposal.

Along with warships of other nationalities the US contingent constitutes a classic show of force. Like most shows of force in recent years it is equivalent to a snarling but toothless dog.

Shows of force are meant to demonstrate both the capacity and the resolve to use force if the opponent does not change its obnoxious behavior. The six American warships "monitoring" the seized cargo carrier are supposed to overawe the pirates into backing down from their criminal ways.

So far the pirates have metaphorically flipped the bird at the US vowing not to give up a single cent of their ransom demand. For extras they once again threatened to kill the hostages if anyone would seek to emulate the French and stage a nocturnal raid on the ro-ro.

There's a simple reason why the pirates ain't scared of the big, bad American ships, each and every one bristling with weapons and men able to use them.

The reason?

The ships fly the stars and stripes. The pirates are betting as are their fellows on shore that the US will not use the force at its disposal. They are betting the US lacks the political will to fire the first shot.

In short, the US lacks street cred with the pirates.

That is pretty darn pathetic.

Now, get a grip on this.

Shows of force work only when two preconditions are met. First it is necessary to have a clear cut political goal of limited nature in firm view. This condition can easily be met off the Somalian coast.

The second condition is harder to meet, at least for the US. The target of coercion, the focus of intimidation must believe that the shower of force has both the capacity and political will to employ force effectively.

The capacity of the US is obvious. The will to use force isn't. Here lies the rub.

Only one thing can erase the certainty in the minds of assorted pirates and their landbased ilk.

Use some force.

Not indiscriminate force. Use up-close and personal force. Bring the USS Howard to a couple hundred meters distance. Using the loud hailer tell the pirates that the captive ship will be sunk by gunfire. Give them a short set time to evacuate the ro-ro. Tell them the hostages must come first.

Count down the seconds remaining on the deadline. Put three or four rounds of solid shot or other non-explosive round into the engine room at the waterline when the deadline expires.

Tell the pirates that those were only preliminary. Order them off the ship, hostages first and separate. Go ahead and guarantee the thugs safe passage ashore.

If they do not cooperate, hit the ro-ro with a few more rounds again at the waterline.

Remind the still uncooperative pirates that unless the hostages are released immediately and safely there is no reason to restrain the naval gunnery.

If the blackhats remain obstinate, sink the ship. Of course, try to save the hostages from the water.

Video the entire operation and make the unedited footage available to the world's media. The message will be received loud and clear by all those who harbor notions of a pirate's life.

The High Minded both here and abroad will howl and shriek. That's unimportant in the larger picture.

The larger picture is one of protecting peaceful maritime commerce. Showing the will to use force assures far better than mere patrols let alone any number of UN resolutions to protect the interests of the world in open, safe maritime operations.

To end piracy requires elevating risks and reducing benefits. Sinking a captured ship perhaps with the loss of crew members' lives does just that. Nothing less will accomplish the task.

The navy of some nation, the US, Russia, France, has to play the role of "bad" or at least tough cop. The Geek would prefer it be the US Navy.

He would prefer that the US not forget that it is a maritime power. He would prefer that we recall our own history. Once upon a long ago and perhaps forgotten time the toast of the day was, "Millions for defense. Not a cent for tribute!" The pirates then were on the Barbary coast of North Africa.

Back then when Administrations did not worry about how their actions would be portrayed in the WaPo or NYT. When we started shooting and stopped paying, the pirates sought less dishonest employment.

This reminds the Geek of a line from a song popular at the opening of World War II when we were losing in every theater of the war. "We did it before. We can do it again."