Posted by
Dawnsblood on Tuesday, October 03, 2006 7:31:20 PM
Koppel obviously believes that fear of an American counterstrike is enough to Iran
in line:
The elimination of American opposition on this issue would open the way
to genuine normalization between our two nations. It might even
convince the Iranians that their country can flourish without nuclear
weapons.
But this should also be made clear to Tehran: If a dirty bomb explodes
in Milwaukee, or some other nuclear device detonates in Baltimore or
Wichita, if Israel or Egypt or Saudi Arabia should fall victim to a
nuclear "accident," Iran should understand that the U.S. government
will not search around for the perpetrator. The return address will be
predetermined, and it will be somewhere in Iran.
I am sure that is exactly the way President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
thinks:
Iran's dominant "Twelver" sect believes this will be
Mohammed ibn Hasan, regarded as the 12th Imam, or righteous descendant
of the Prophet Mohammad.
He is said to have gone
into "occlusion" in the ninth century, at the age of five. His return
will be preceded by cosmic chaos, war and bloodshed. After a
cataclysmic confrontation with evil and darkness, the Mahdi will lead
the world to an era of universal peace.
This is
similar to the Christian vision of the Apocalypse. Indeed, the Hidden
Imam is expected to return in the company of Jesus.
Mr
Ahmadinejad appears to believe that these events are close at hand and
that ordinary mortals can influence the divine timetable.
The
prospect of such a man obtaining nuclear weapons is worrying. The
unspoken question is this: is Mr Ahmadinejad now tempting a clash with
the West because he feels safe in the belief of the imminent return of
the Hidden Imam? Worse, might he be trying to provoke chaos in the hope
of hastening his reappearance?
Sure we can trust this man with nuclear weapons, Ted?