"If you want to stop the pirates you hit the bases from which they operate."

Yes. That would be the most effective military response to the present situation. That's certainly what I would recommend if I were in command of an anti-piracy effort in those waters.

Meanwhile, however...according to a recent article someone linked to below...

"Piracy is one of the few ways to make money in Somalia. Half the population is dependent on aid and a whole generation has grown up knowing nothing but war. A recent report by London's Chatham House think-tank said pirates raked in more than $30 million in ransoms last year."

So, that desperate situation is the engine that is driving the growth of piracy in the region, and the piracy becomes inevitable under those circumstances. Smashing their coastal bases would temporarily shut them down, but the only thing that could permanently cure the problem would be to improve financial conditions for ordinary people in Somalia, to rescue a society that has fallen apart and been abandoned to fester in its own isolation and despair...

No one seems willing to take that burden on. Not surprising, when you think about it...specially in these bad economic times. Who, after all, would be the first to say "We'll do it." ?