Somali Pirate Encounter and American Exceptionalism

Recently the Somali Pirates took possession of their first US ship the Maersk Alabama. Over the last few years the Somali Pirates have baffled international maritime authorities having seized hundreds of ships flying flags of other nations. Their pirating efforts have been virtually undaunted, that is until they messed with the United States. The US/Pirate encounter has given us and the world another reason to believe that American Exceptionalism is real.

American Exceptionalism, a concept first put forth by Alexis de Tocqueville, is the idea that America has a special place at the head of all developed nations. Our history, traditions, institutions and most importantly our people, have advanced, in a relatively short period of time, far more than other nations. It is controversial, particularly for liberals who point to our history of slavery, and our present struggle with lagging education statistics and civil rights to decry American Exceptionalism as a myth.

The recent dust up with the Somali Pirates should be added to the list of reasons for believing that there is something special about America, and something very real about American Exceptionalism. Hundreds of foreign ships have been captured by the pirates, and the governments and owners of every one of those ships have given in to the pirates demands, or have let the captured sailors, around 230 of them, rot in pirate custody. On the other hand, when the pirates captured their first American ship, the American crew fought back and indeed took back control over their ship.

The refusal of the American crew to lay down before the pirates hearkens back to September 11, 2001, when the American passengers of Flight 93, on their own initiative, in an effort to defend the United States, attacked the hijackers and caused the plane to crash in a field, rather than into an important government building. The lesson from that infamous day was that the terrorists should be afraid of the American people, not the other way around. The Somali Pirates have learned the same lesson.

The Somali Pirate incident has shown us that American Exceptionalism does not stem from our government, our material wealth, or our massive and deadly military - it stems, as it always has, from our people. The crew of the Maersk Alabama epitomizes the American Spirit, when challenged, they showed that they are tough, independent, and will return violence in the face of violence.

And of course, lets not forget the SEALS. All they needed was the go ahead and three quick shots later the situation was over.