Shirley Jahad
April 17, 2009
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Given all the news of pirates off the coast of Somalia, we'll take a few minutes to explore the history of the US in dealing with pirates. That history goes back to the founding of the country. Pirates helped spur the writing of the US Constitution and the creation of the US Navy. And pirates are the impetus for the first foreign war the US fought. KPCC's Shirley Jahad talks about this with historian Michael Oren, author of "Power, Faith, and Fantasy: US History in the Middle East."