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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: FJB who wrote (358693)	4/9/2010 6:03:35 PM
From: SmoothSail	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 793955

Three American Hikers Jailed in Iran Accused of Espionage According to the Iranian State TV, the Intelligence Minister of Iran, Heidar Mosleh, has accused the American hikers of espionage, saying they have links to the U.S. intelligence services and that the Ministry has credible evidence of their links. The Iranian establishment through its Ministry of Intelligence and Quds forces, has long practiced taking hostages and using them as bargaining chips, and that’s not specific to U.S. citizens; Germany, France and England have been subjected to such incidents many times. The Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has openly discussed the idea of a prisoner swap — releasing Clotilde Reiss (the French citizen charged with endangering national security) and the three American hikers, Josh Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd — for the Iranians arrested in U.S. being held for illegal arms transactions to Iran, and the Iranian convicted assassin Ali Vakili Rad in France. The Iranian authorities are sending a message to President Obama: If you try sanctions, we will charge Josh, Shane and Sarah with espionage and put them on trial. While the reason for the behavior of the Iranian leaders is still a mystery to the West, it is quite simple and its one and the same that emboldened Bin Laden to attack U.S. on 9/11. As long as we remain quiet and do not respond strongly to these criminal acts, we will embolden our enemies in their actions, and remain vulnerable defending our rights and the well being of our citizens. When the fanatics in Iran invaded the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took hostages — an act of war — we failed to confront them head on. When the Guards blew up the Marine Barracks in Lebanon, we packed up and left. When they created Hezbollah, started Islamic Jihad, took hostages, tortured and killed William Buckley (CIA officer in Beirut), we negotiated for better relations with the very same people involved in Buckley’s death. These sorts of incidents are many and the list too long to recount, however, the point I want to make is simple: As long as we allow ourselves to remain victims, as long as we don’t find the courage to show the Iranian rulers that we will not put up with such aggressions, we can expect the same outrageous conduct for many years to come. One difference? When Iran’s leaders become nuclear armed, expect much worse and irrational behavior from these fanatics in Iran. Their only goal? Our demise! atimetobetray.com