member, Maritime Law Association
Attorney and member of the Maritime Law Association; retired Navy Reserve captain, and he blogs at Eagle Speak
PROFILE
Mark Tempest
Guest
FROM Mark Tempest
To the Point
The Perils of Modern Piracy Somali pirates want $15 million in ransom money for a Saudi tanker carrying $100 million worth of crude oil. The capture of the Sirius Star, which was taken earlier this month, is the most daring modern pirate escapade to date, and this morning, there's news that yet another cargo freighter has been captured, this one from Yemen. That brings the total of ships now being held by pirates to seventeen. There've been more than 200 incidents this year, with a doubling of attacks off the Somali coast. That’s bad news for a world in which eighty percent of international goods travel by sea. Why has the coast of east Africa became such a dangerous place for shipping? What has caused the resurgence in piracy on the world's oceans? Who are the pirates targeting? Why can't they be stopped? How is the international community responding to the problem?
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To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
To the Point
Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?
To the Point
Human Rights in the era of Donald Trump President Trump’s UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, said today the US might pull out of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Serious violators of human rights are members of the Council itself–and a US resignation could make things worse. Later on today’s show, now that he’s into his second term, comedian turned US Senator Al Franken is telling jokes again.
To the Point
The longest US war: Will Trump send more troops to Afghanistan? The Trump White House is divided over the Pentagon's request for more troops in Afghanistan—where the US has been fighting for the past 16 years. Is there a formula -- either for "victory" or a political settlement? Is there an end in sight for America's longest war?