On Wednesday, the world welcomed the news from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, president and chief nutjob of Iran, that the 15 British sailors and Royal Marines captured and held hostage by Iran two weeks ago would be released. These members of the British military were captured by an Iranian naval unit after conducting a routine boarding of a cargo ship in disputed waters in the Persian Gulf. The British claim they were operating under a UN mandate in Iraqi waters. The Iranians counter that the British were trespassing in Iranian waters and that the capture was justified.
Regardless of where the 15 were actually abducted, it's still one global mini-crisis that should never have happened. The responsibility for this entire ordeal falls squarely on the unstable Ahmadinejad and his penchant for drama. The Iranian leader loves attention and is willing to participate in outlandish publicity stunts to draw global interest to himself. He denied the Holocaust, called for Israel to be wiped into the sea and tried to kick-start his country's nuclear program. Now he's drawn out the most recent altercation with Great Britain for as long as was safe for his country.
Iran constantly changed its position on the prisoners, correctly dubbed "hostages" by President Bush. At first it was going to be just a couple of days before they were released, then they were going to be put on trial, then the lone female was going to be released, then she wasn't, then they were going to go on trial again, then Iran announced they may not go on trial after all. But the most dramatic moment came Wednesday, when Ahmadinejad announced their release to the world as an act of Iranian benevolence. Yes, that's right, crazy old Ahmadinejad is such a nice guy that he decided to give amnesty to these terrible criminals as a gift to the British people. Then he paraded them on television again, this time having them thank him for his compassion in a nauseating made-for-TV spectacle.
What on earth was Ahmadinejad thinking by doing this in the first place? His country is already in the international doghouse because of its refusal to halt its nuclear program. By kidnapping the military personnel of a member of the UN Security Council for at-best questionable reasons, Ahmadinejad has made it difficult even for his normal buddies, Vladimir Putin in Russia and the communist leadership in China, to stand up for his latest insane stunt.
As "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart said on his program last week, "Hey Iran, what are you doing? Do you know how hard we are working over here to keep President Bombs-a-lot from throwing down on you guys?" Ahmadinejad's latest stunt only gives the Bush administration more ammunition in its drive against the Iranian government. This does not bode well for the future of the American-Iranian relationship because, as seen with the release of the British hostages, sometime being able to talk to your enemies pays dividends.
Benjamin Van der Horst is a College sophomore from Cincinnati. He is executive director of the nonpartisan political organization CSAmerica and the managing editor of the Emory Political Review.
Regardless of where the 15 were actually abducted, it's still one global mini-crisis that should never have happened. The responsibility for this entire ordeal falls squarely on the unstable Ahmadinejad and his penchant for drama. The Iranian leader loves attention and is willing to participate in outlandish publicity stunts to draw global interest to himself. He denied the Holocaust, called for Israel to be wiped into the sea and tried to kick-start his country's nuclear program. Now he's drawn out the most recent altercation with Great Britain for as long as was safe for his country.
Iran constantly changed its position on the prisoners, correctly dubbed "hostages" by President Bush. At first it was going to be just a couple of days before they were released, then they were going to be put on trial, then the lone female was going to be released, then she wasn't, then they were going to go on trial again, then Iran announced they may not go on trial after all. But the most dramatic moment came Wednesday, when Ahmadinejad announced their release to the world as an act of Iranian benevolence. Yes, that's right, crazy old Ahmadinejad is such a nice guy that he decided to give amnesty to these terrible criminals as a gift to the British people. Then he paraded them on television again, this time having them thank him for his compassion in a nauseating made-for-TV spectacle.
What on earth was Ahmadinejad thinking by doing this in the first place? His country is already in the international doghouse because of its refusal to halt its nuclear program. By kidnapping the military personnel of a member of the UN Security Council for at-best questionable reasons, Ahmadinejad has made it difficult even for his normal buddies, Vladimir Putin in Russia and the communist leadership in China, to stand up for his latest insane stunt.
As "Daily Show" host Jon Stewart said on his program last week, "Hey Iran, what are you doing? Do you know how hard we are working over here to keep President Bombs-a-lot from throwing down on you guys?" Ahmadinejad's latest stunt only gives the Bush administration more ammunition in its drive against the Iranian government. This does not bode well for the future of the American-Iranian relationship because, as seen with the release of the British hostages, sometime being able to talk to your enemies pays dividends.
Benjamin Van der Horst is a College sophomore from Cincinnati. He is executive director of the nonpartisan political organization CSAmerica and the managing editor of the Emory Political Review.
This ran on 4/6/07.
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