Now the question is how will those shots be perceived. Will they be perceived as the opening action to stop piracy on the high seas? Or will they be perceived as part of the ongoing dominance of the rich over the poor? Or will they be perceived as many things in between?
Supposedly piracy grew out of Somali fishermen striking back at those who overfished their coastal waters. But also warlords control much of the country and may have seen it as a way to enrich themselves. There are also many Somalis who wish the warlords would go away and leave them in peace. These same Somalis fear the rich countries will attack the warlords but bomb the shops and homes of the people.
I read an interview with Joshua Cooper Ramo, author of "The Age of the Unthinkable", in "Why Things May Never Return to Normal", Rick Newman, USNews, 2009-04-10
The quote that stood out as apropos the piracy situation was:
"We need a complete revolution in how we act and how we should think. One shift we need to make is how we look at the world. We focus on single objects without paying attention to other realities of the situation. We need to go from narrow-gazing to a broad focus."
Firing three shots is narrow-gazing; looking at all the grievances, perceived or real is broad focus. Let us hope that Obama and many other leaders can come together to address all the grievances involved in the piracy problem.
