Could Obama be using this pirate issue as a lead-in to helping Africa?

The Long and Hidden History of the U.S in Somalia
by Stephen Zunes
AlterNet, January 21, 2002
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/North_Africa/Hx_US_Somalia.html

Somalia: Another CIA-Backed Coup Blows Up
by Mike Whitney
http://aljazeera.com/news/articles/42/Somalia_Another_CIAbacked_coup_blows_up.html

Up until a month ago, no one in the Bush administration showed the least bit of interest in the incidents of piracy off the coast of Somalia. Now that's all changed and there's talk of sending in the Navy to patrol the waters off the Horn of Africa and clean up the pirates hideouts. Why the sudden about-face? Could it have something to do with the fact that the Ethiopian army is planning to withdrawal all of its troops from Mogadishu by the end of the year, thus, ending the failed two year US-backed occupation of Somalia?
The United States has lost the ground war in Somalia, but that doesn't mean its geopolitical objectives have changed one iota. The US intends to stay in the region for years to come and use its naval power to control the critical shipping lanes from the Gulf of Aden. The growing strength of the Somali national resistance is a set-back, but it doesn't change the basic game-plan. The pirates are actually a blessing in disguise. They provide an excuse for the administration to beef up it's military presence and put down roots. Every crisis is an opportunity.

America's interests in Somalia:
Four major U.S. oil companies are sitting on a prospective fortune in exclusive concessions
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/North_Africa/Somalia_US_OilCorp_Fortune.html



Somalia: Hidden Catastrophe, Hidden Agenda
by Media Lens
www.dissidentvoice.org/, May 14th, 2008
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/North_Africa/Somalia_Hidden_Agenda.html


More Blood For Oil

by Carl Bloise
www.zmag.org, January 16, 2007
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Africa/MoreBloodOil_Somalia.html