Iran = Threat to World Peace
I knew that. You knew that, right? CNN:
JERUSALEM (CNN) — The war of words between United States and Tehran continued Wednesday, with President Bush repeating his assertion that Iran is “a threat to world peace.”
The two countries have been trading accusations since a weekend confrontation involving Iranian boats and U.S. Navy warships in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States claims Iranian vessels deliberately sped toward its warships despite warnings to stay away.
Bush’s criticism of Iran came Wednesday during a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem. Bush is in the region to encourage the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.
Bush called the incident “a very dangerous gesture” by Iran and warned the Islamic republic against any escalation.
“We have made it very clear, and they know our position, and that is: There will be serious consequences if they attack our ships, pure and simple.”
“My advice to them is: Don’t do it.”
Earlier in the day, National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said the Sunday incident in the Strait of Hormuz almost triggered an exchange of fire — and if it happens again there may be a battle.
The Pentagon released dramatic video of Sunday’s encounter, which occurred in the narrow channel critical to the shipment of oil from the Persian Gulf. Iran’s navy said the video was faked, according to state-run media.
“It’s the kind of incident that can provoke exchange of fire,” Hadley said. “And we think the Iranians need to be on notice that they are fishing in troubled waters here.”
The problem is, the mullahs have proven to be masters of brinksmanship and are dealing with a world that has been willing to give them the benefit of no doubt whatsoever. It would be entertaining to watch the US Navy blow away some IRG speedboats, and we may be treated to that, if they get cockier. But they have the world and the United States, thanks in no small part to our inept intelligence agencies and self-interested Congress, as well as Bush’s failure to act in a timely fashion, exactly where they want us. In all likelihood, this is now a legacy issue. Someone else will inherit it. Mullahs’ choice … President Obama … President Huckabee … President Clinton. President Tinfoil Helmet would be a gift, but endtime Mahdist mullahs are realists.
The Kumbayah crowd is convinced this is a Gulf of Tonkin incident, though they really need to review their history. That involved shooting at mystery boats. Today’s Gulf of Tonkin is in downtown Baghdad, Basra, elsewhere in Iraq, there’s no mystery about it, and the Bush administration has been extremely restrained in its reaction to Iranian provocations and murderous meddling. Meanwhile, Here’s a HuffPoster who thinks this is more of a Gulf of Tonka incident. Hooman Majd calls the Hormuz boat races a shoddy farce, is convinced you’ll accuse him of being an apologist for the Iranian regime, but goes on to assure his readers it really just comes down to mental illness, delusions on the part of the Bush administration and GOP candidates:
The Bush administration seems to have finally settled on a schizophrenic Iran policy; a policy that requires it to on the one hand send conciliatory messages to its foe, if for no other reason than to keep Iraq from imploding, and the other hand maintain pressure on Iran, threatening it from time to time and raising with a domestic audience as well as with the Arab states the specter of a bogeyman run amok in the world’s most dangerous region. The policy actually makes sense, in some regards, as Mr. Bush would like nothing more than a stable Iraq in his legacy, something that is impossible without Iran’s help (and something that would give a boost to any Republican candidate, particularly Mr. McCain, in the fall), but he also doesn’t want to see Iranian power grow too much, especially now that U.S.-allied Arab countries are falling over themselves to appease Iran. The specter of a dangerous Iran, one that could threaten the U.S., is also important for the Republican candidates, robbed as they were in December of their favorite villain with the release of the NIE report that suggested the Iranians were not, in fact, developing nuclear weapons.
Topics: Iran
Posted by Jules Crittenden at 8:04 am on Thursday, January 10, 2008
3 Responses to “Iran = Threat to World Peace”
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January 10th, 2008 at 9:28 am
I am continuously astonished when self- anointed ex-spurts* almost immediately churn out their own version of an event.
Like Hamood Majd’s It’s a Fake
It reminds me of those endless articles and dissertations for years now, people spinning stories (occasionally, entire books) on the fakery behind the “official” version of how and why the Twin Towers came down.
A lot of highly arrogant people espousing a lot of highly questionable accounts on flimsy data, wishful thinking and no real knowledge.
*an ex is a has-been and a spurt is a drip under pressure
January 10th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Well,. if the vid is fake, then there won’t be any complaints when we splash some “fake boats” next time will there?
January 10th, 2008 at 8:57 pm
Wait until Iran does make that singular dumb move, either through Achmadinejad running his mouth, the Straits of Hormuz blocked off, or the IRG actually taking out a lower-level US Navy ship. While the mullahs are occupied with thumping their chests, the Israelis will quickly swoop in and set Iran’s nuke program several decades, with a few refinery explosions for good measure. Classic backdoor fake: keep the defense occupied while the offense is headed to the goalpost, and you only find out about the touchdown when the crowd is screaming.
The Iranian mullahs think they have our fingers in a vice, thanks to the helpful idiots in the press, the State Department and the CIA. The US is playing a very smart game: war is exactly what Iran wants so it can establish hardline imperialism in the Middle East. The longer the US denies the Iranians that ability, the more hungry and desperate the Iranians become to do anything and everything to gain propanganda and jingoism brownie points. When Iran does the wrong thing, the US will certainly exploit that weakness to its advantage.