The Golden Age of Piracy ending in the mid 19th century when Navys began partrolling the seas. If ye be wanting a long glass to peer over the horizon, this be the read fer ye. In Peter Zeihan's new book "The End of the World is Just the Beginning", he predicts the return of pirates, privateers and State backed piracy. The United State has been the protector of the seas for the past 7 decades. After many years of war in the Middle East, we arrr tired of policing the sand box. We are now oil independant and will stop holding up the world order.
It be only a matter of to time until some African, Middle Eastern or Asian country decides they need resources they don't have and takes a ship. Or maybe they want to cause trouble for one of their rival nations by shooting an oil tanker. The second that happens, the naval insurance rates will sky rocket and people will begin arming their cargo ships. This was the way of the world for thousand of years before the end of WW2. In 20 to 40 years, Peter predicts the come back of pirates, privateers and state backed piracy.
You will have to read the entire book to get all the interconnected details. Overall I thought the book was well presented and it changed my view of what is possible for the world. The author provides some well researched ideas on how demographics and geo-politics interact in a time of everything bubble popping. The book made it to the NY Times Non-Fiction Best Sellers List the week after its release.
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