American Ship Hijacked!

While Somali pirates have run amuck for the past several years, they hadn't hijacked an American ship. One of the main reasons is that there aren't many anymore. Many are Jones Act ships: ships that go from US port to US port must be American flagged. The larger international ships are few but tend to be part of the Maritime Security Program.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - Somali pirates on Wednesday hijacked a U.S.-flagged cargo
ship with 21 crew members aboard, a diplomat and a U.S. Navy spokesman said.
The Kenya-based diplomat identified the vessel as the 17,000-ton Maersk
Alabama and said all the crew members are American. The diplomat spoke on
condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
The U.S. Navy confirmed that a U.S. flagged ship with 21 members of crew was
hijacked early Wednesday off the eastern coast of Somalia.

Flying an American flag is costly to companies these days. You have to have a more expensive crew and you have added regulation. The benefit of flying is the protection of the US Navy. While previous ships may have been owned by European companies, they flew Panamanian or Liberian flag, two of the most popular "flags of convenience."

Obama has to react strongly to this invasion. Seizing an American ship in international waters is a like seizing an embassy. What's the point of the most powerful Navy in the world if you are unwilling to use it.

Meanwhile, I'm saying prayers for the crew and their families.