Obama may justifiably consider the successful release of Cpt. Philips to be a major success. Now he must take the next step and put the surviving pirate on trial in a US court.

There are many reasons for this, but the most important of these is the fact that criminalization works. During the 1970s many European countries were affected by terrorism. Britain adopted a US style model declaring war on the terrorists, using torture and imprisonment without trial. The Troubles lasted another thirty years and only ended for good after the 9/11 attack shut down the NORAID fund line. West Germany faced an equivalent threat, a terrorist movement with considerably broader popular support but refused to treat the matter as anything other than a criminal affair. The Baader-Meinhof gang was rapidly captured and eliminated.

Even more striking is the change in the number of deaths in the Northern Ireland conflict after the UK Labour government adopted West German 'criminalization' tactics in 1976. The number of deaths dropped to a third the previous level even though the piolitical tensions actually increased during the IRA hunger strike - an action for the 'right' to poliltical status.

The US needs to send a message that it is going to abandon the failed policies of the Bush-Cheney era and adopt the criminalization policy that was successful in Northern Ireland. Putting the remaining pirate on trial is precisely the right message to send.

A secondary reason to put the pirate on trial in the US rather than Kenya is the suggestion that this might be done to save having to explain US military/police tactics. There is nothing to appologize for. The pirates were threatening to use deadly force. The US authorities had the right to use deadly force regardless of what other circumstances might have existed.

At this point the pirates and their sympathizers are suggesting that they might take 'retribution' for the attack. That would be unwise.