The Business of Piracy....

Shadow Force is set amodst the battle against Somali pirates. I've done a piece for the FT amout the business of piracy. You can read it online here.

Why Can't Pirates Be Arrested?

There's a great piece in the Telegraph by Norman Tebbitt, about why pirates can't be arrested. It's bonkers, of course. There is effectively no sanction against them. When I researching this for 'Shadow Force' it appeared the ship-owners weren't even allowed to employ armed guards. Crazy.

Pirate trips...

According to this report, some Russian companies are offering pirate-hunting cruises. Given that the third book in the Death Force series is about pirates, maybe I should book myself a ticket.

How To Beat The Pirates

In The Spectator this week, I've been writing about the mercenaries who are taking on the pirates. It was a really interesting piece to research, because the range of techniques is so wide. The third in the 'Death Force' series is going to tackle the issue of piracy - there hardly seems a better subject in the world for a thriller right now.

Are Pirates Heroes?

There is a good piece in The Times by Ben Macintyre about the Somali pirates. He discusses how they see themslves more as Robin Hood figures than criminals. Right now, I'm working on the outline for the third book in the 'Death Force' series which is going to be set amidst the pirates. It strikes me that pirates are at least in part heroic figures, or at least lovable rogues, and the story needs t reflect that. They can't be purely evil.

The Economics of Piracy

I was pleased to see my Bloomberg column on piracy getting picked up in papers in Seattle, Taiwan and India, amongst others. I guess people are interested in pirates - one reason I might well use that as the subject of the next Death Force thriller. My main point was that you can't deal with pirates until you deal with the chaos in Somalia. I have a feeling that in the next 20 years, the world is going to start getting involved in Africa again. You can't just leave a whole continent in chaos. But what? Not a neo-colonialist soilution - no one wants that. Something more imaginative is needed.

The Economics of Piracy

The New York Times has an interesting discussion of the economics of piracy. Ships wouldn't be getting hijacked off the coast of Somalia unless it was a profitable trade. The interesting question is how the economics wok out in the medium term. Eventually, the shipping trade will have to decide whether it is cheaper to pay protection money to a Somalia warload to stop their vessels getting hit. Or is it cheaper to pay a military force to go and deal with the pirates?

Re-Routing Shipping To Avoid Pirates

There is a fascinating nugget in the FT today, noting that at least one big shipping company has startede re-routing its vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, rather than send them through the Suez Canal and risk attack by Somalia's pairates. Fairly obviously, decision like that are adding huge costs to world trade. It can't be long before a major assault on the pirates in unleashed.

New York Times On Pirates

The New York Times has a great piece on Somalia's priates, which is likely to be the subject for the third in my Death Force series of books. What it makes clear is just how much piracy has been integrated in the local economy. It's a way of life, just as it was in the eighteenth century.

Mercenaries Vs Pirates

The notion of using mercenary forces to tackle the pirates off the coast of Somalia is gaining ground. Indeed, the giant US private miliary corporation Blackwater has just put out a press release volunteering its services. Since shipping insurance rates have risen ten-fold this year because of the threat from pirates, you can see why it makes sense. As a plot line for the third book in the Death Force series, this is looking better all the time.

Pirates vs Mercenaries

One of the great things about writing a series of books aboug a gang of mercenaries is that there is never any shortage of things to write about. I've already been thinking about setting the third book in the series in the pirate-infested waters off Somalia. But in the blogosphere, the idea is already out there already. Excaliber Forums thinks Lloyd's shipping insurers could pay, and it's not a bad idea. After all, people pay for private security for their offices, factories or oil rigs. Why not their ships as well?