Book Review: Two Books On Today's Problem Of Naval Piracy

Modern-Day Blackbeards -- Wall Street Journal

There is nothing new about menace on the high seas—or about the solutions that would make it disappear.

Pirates are an age-old menace. They are also a useful index of the advance and decline of civilization. Sea-roving brigands infested the waters of the ancient world until the Roman Empire stamped them out. With the fall of Rome and the onset of the Dark Ages the pirates returned. They thrived for centuries with the connivance of England's Queen Elizabeth I and other monarchs who were willing to tolerate a level of disorder and barbarism if it meant that hired privateers like Francis Drake would cut them in on the loot.

Read more ....

My Comment: Considering the impact that naval piracy can have on our shipping lanes, and the realization that naval shipping accounts for 80% of our international trade .... these two books are a valuable addition to a discussion that I am sure will only increase with time.