Pirates, Bandits or Desperadoes?

The situation in Somalia has been desperate for decades now. Civil war is common in that part of the world. The forces behind it are mostly man-made -- gun runners, political manipulators, religious insurgents, etc. As a result, there has been famine for years . However, in the news today is the manifestation of that story. And it is being mistaken for the story itself.

The media conveniently uses the term "pirates" because of the sensational images it evokes of seafaring naves doing battle with maritime vessels; only now the buccaneers are black teens and not long-haired outlaws from Europe. They carry AK-47s, not sabres. They are still desperate and lawless. Image if gangs from Oakland to Los Angeles were to go unchecked for years...The Bloods and Crips, or some other gang, could likewise turn the southern coast of California into a playground for boat-cruising stick up men...Because someone will always be there to provide the guns, if nothing else.

Image the international tourist trade possible by maximizing this coast line...

War torn Somali soldiers... They have been fighting for decades now.

When the conflicts were mostly on land, this band of desperadoes on pick-up trucks were known in the media as "technicals." They have traded in their trucks for motor boats, so now they are "pirates."
Women in traditional dress. Possibilities for a better future are based on treatment of the women..."The hand the rocks the cradle rules the world."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nro-jzD7Bwk&feature=rec-HM-rn

OBAMA OPENS UP CUBA

After decades of getting mad at the little kid on the playground for showing us up on the court, President Obama's administration is taking a step toward grown-up diplomacy, by improving our relationship with the people of Cuba. Good for him! Even better for the pro-Cuban lobby, including the Congressional Black Caucus. Their persistence is paying dividends.

The United States has greatly improved relations with communist Viet Nam, despite thousands of American soldiers dead from our interventions. We have always maintained open diplomacy with Russia -- even during the "cold war." And we implore the Chinese to buy our debt, when they purportedly have the worst human rights record of any industrialized nation. Why not Cuba?...