[AtomicLabMonkey]

Well, the reason we haven't attacked them on land yet is because no one wants to send troops back into Somalia. We all remember what a clusterfuck it was the last time we tried that.

I'd also guess that the main reason this saga went on for 5 days is that.. it could. Those guys were trapped in a lifeboat with no power and a limited amount of food, surrounded by Navy warships. The most prudent thing to do was just let them sweat until they made a mistake, which is what they did, and promptly got their heads blown off.

I doubt that any cruise ships will be jacked, simply because they're harder targets. They are relatively fast and their lowest exposed deck is high off the water. Tankers and container ships ride very low in the water when loaded, and are very slow. Pirates are predators, and follow predator behavior patterns. There is no good reason for them to expend extra effort trying to board a cruise ship when there are 20 fat, juicy container ships in the same area that are far easier targets.