Iran’s Act of War

Not too long ago, the unjust capture of 15 British sailors by Iran (a hostile nation) would have been seen as an act of war. In today’s wishy-washy world of anti-America (and its allies) hysteria, where apologists for terrorism are crawling out of every nook and cranny to be feted on television, this aggressive deed has been relegated to a minor issue in the mainstream media. The UK is already being blamed for provoking the incident and for lying about the true geographical location of its forces. It is a sad day when the left sides with an Iranian leadership that has called for the destruction of Israel, denied the holocaust took place and has as one of its goals the demise of the USA. Sad, but not surprising, when one considers that many of these same people on the left blamed the western world for the 9/11 attacks.

Where the capture has received coverage, the tone and content of the reporting have suggested that the US and the UK have somehow concocted the whole episode in order to have a reason for launching military action against Iran (conveniently forgetting the fact that there are already numerous reasons to justify military action against this hostile nation).

The anti-Bush/America/UK crowd, including numerous Hollywood celebrities, are quick to attack the benevolent forces of the Coalition, and yet not one word is uttered condemning the illegal actions of the Iranians, in this incident or many others (such as the intrusions into Iraq to attack US forces).

It is somewhat ironic that Bush’s foreign policy of spreading freedom and safeguarding our democracy defends the rights of individuals to choose their lifestyles, religions, opinions and political allegiances, while the regimes and extremist groups that the anti-Bush Hollywood herd seems to prefer (over the leaders of the West) outlaw individuality and choice.

The UK’s response to the crisis has been uncharacteristically weak so far. One can only hope that there will be serious consequences for Iran if the 15 sailors are not released in the next day or two. Even if they are freed, Iran’s leadership needs to be given a very clear message about its unacceptable behaviour. The way things are going, Iran will soon have a nuclear weapon – suddenly, it will throw its weight around even more if it knows the rest of the world will sit back and do nothing.

Unfortunately, the rest of the world, in the shape of the UN, will probably do nothing if past form is a guide. Once again, the responsibility for dealing with Iran will fall upon nations like the US and the UK – nations who have the courage and foresight to act with prudence in the best interests of the free world.