ARC Press Release: Ending Piracy Should be a U.S. Government Priority

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ARC Press Release: Ending Piracy Should be a U.S. Government Priority

Submitted by Ayn Rand Center on Mon, 2008-11-24 20:37

Ending Piracy Should be a U.S. Government Priority
November 24, 2008

Washington, D.C.-- “It is unbelievable that one of the top news stories, today in the 21st century, is that pirates are seizing ships, cargo and people off the high seas,” said Yaron Brook, executive director of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights.

“The Gulf of Aden is a major international shipping route. The Somali pirates are snatching cargo destined for all corners of the globe. To the extent that American commercial interests are being impacted, the U.S. government should immediately and decisively secure the shipping route by whatever military means necessary. Why have a navy if not to safeguard the rights of Americans to participate in and benefit from trade on the high seas?

“The American government should act swiftly: the ransom money collected by the pirates is at least in part being filtered to Islamic totalitarian groups, which have openly declared ‘Death to America.’ Our failure to act is providing additional strength to our known enemies.”

### ### ###

Yaron Brook is executive director of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights. He is a contributing editor of The Objective Standard and his articles have been featured in major publications such as Forbes.com, USA Today, the Houston Chronicle, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Providence Journal and the Orange County Register. Dr. Brook is often interviewed on radio and is a frequent guest on a variety of national TV shows, having appeared in the new Fox Business Network, FOX News Channel, CNN, CNBC, and C-SPAN. Dr. Brook, a former finance professor, lectures on Objectivism, capitalism, business and foreign policy at college campuses, community groups and corporations across America and throughout the world.

To interview Dr. Brook or book him for your show, please contact David Holcberg:
949-222-6550, ext. 226
media@aynrandcenter.org

For more information on Objectivism’s unique point of view, go to ARC’s Web site. The Ayn Rand Center is a division of the Ayn Rand Institute and promotes the philosophy of Ayn Rand, author of “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.”

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Well, now you have Islamists

Submitted by Richard Wiig on Wed, 2008-11-26 05:44.

Well, now you have Islamists saying they will ram American ships with suicide boats, so I'd say that's a good enough reason for military involvement. Blast the fuckers, with no mercy.

WTF?

Submitted by Duncan Bayne on Wed, 2008-11-26 00:20.

To quote Babbage, "I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question."

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Buy and wear InfidelGear - 100% of all InfidelGear profit goes to SOLO!

There you go again, Aaron...

Submitted by atlascott on Sat, 2008-11-29 21:02.

...with your common sense and clear thinking. Knock it off. Someone might just take your advice and wipe the pirates out.

I am sure NATO will get together and pass some sort of resolution and then we can all go about our business: pirates pirating (though with a stern condemnation from the international community), and Americans wondering what happened to our 401(k) retirement plans...

Scott DeSalvo

www.desalvolaw.com
FREE Injury Report and CD Reveal the Secrets You Need to Know to Protect Your RIGHTS!

International shipping

Submitted by Aaron on Tue, 2008-11-25 18:40.

International shipping regulations unfortunately help ensure that merchant vessels are unarmed, even with small arms. It's not practical for the military vessels to be escorts and police, and I don't think it's worth military involvement except when there is a clear port where the pirates take captured ships and operate from (which there is right now). Storm major bases only, treat the pirates to a classic hanging, and the rest could easily be handled/deterred by the same way air hijackings should be - allowing merchant vessels to mount arms or crew carry small arms.

Aaron

We should stay out of it

Submitted by atlascott on Tue, 2008-11-25 17:16.

Unless it directly affects us. Meaning, unless there is piracy against American ships or which affects American shipping lanes.

And then, if it does, we should literally wipe the pirates off the face of the earth as efficiently as possible, as a warning to the next group which decides to infringe an American property right.

Scott DeSalvo

www.desalvolaw.com
FREE Injury Report and CD Reveal the Secrets You Need to Know to Protect Your RIGHTS!

The piracy is a consequence

Submitted by Richard Wiig on Tue, 2008-11-25 06:05.

The piracy is a consequence of Islamic ideology. And Kenny, how could you even entertain the idea that Somalian pirates could equate to Ragnar Denneskjold?

You'd be surprised Phil

Submitted by gregster on Tue, 2008-11-25 05:46.

Her enduring influence cannot be underestimated.

Damn

Submitted by PhilipD on Tue, 2008-11-25 05:28.

You mean to say the average Somalian pirate isn't well-versed in Rand?

"The ultimate result of shielding men from folly is to fill the world with fools."

-Herbert Spencer

Kenny

Submitted by Lindsay Perigo on Tue, 2008-11-25 04:28.

The purpose of Ragnar's "piracy" was to restore to producers what had been looted from them by way of taxation. I doubt that even the ARI would support such "piracy" were it to occur, unfortunately, though *I* certainly would. The present real-life pirates are looters pure and simple, and it is a legitimate, mandatory function of government to go after them.