Ron Paul Suggests Allowing Bounty Hunters to Fight Somali Pirates

In what will certainly make news as a novel approach to battling the ongoing pirate problem in the Gulf of Aden, Ron Paul has suggested using letters of marque and reprisal, which would allow the U.S. to recruit privateers and bounty hunters to battle Somali pirates. His suggestion is one that is geared primarily toward lessening the financial burden the U.S. is taking on by having U.S. Navy ships and resources constantly tracking and engaging Somali pirates. Some cost estimates of the rescue operation that freed Captain Richard Phillips are in the tens of millions.

There are obvious pitfalls to the plan, however, the most glaring being that privateers and bounty hunters would likely be ill-equipped to battle the pirates and unable to properly identify "pirates" as opposed to Somali fishermen, for example. That says nothing of the legal nightmare that would ensue when the inevitable accidental attacks start occurring. Yet, this idea will likely get some legitimate press and airtime because no one seems to have any real plan for how to stop the pirate attacks.

Again, the simple solution seems to me to arm the ships themselves and let them defend themselves against the pirates. Perhaps Paul's plan would be effective in that manner. Rather than having bounty hunters and privateers taking their yachts and fishing boats to the Gulf of Aden, the same bounty hunters could act as mercenaries stationed on the ships that must use the dangerous waters. A few good bounty hunters armed with machine guns and a few rocket launchers would be more than enough to shut down any pirate attack.