It seems to me that this cold and heartless policy would actually reduce the incentive for future hostage-taking; but it does conflict with the ethos of “leave no man behind” cultivated by the US and British military.

Actually, it’s a bit more complicated than that. It doesn’t mean that you’re no longer interested in getting your men back, it just means that it’s no longer the first priority.

Because if you MAKE it a priority, you’re playing right into the hands of the hostage takers, not only making the current hostages valuable to them as bargaining chips, but also guaranteeing future hostage takings.

Ironically, the very BEST way of getting them back is by treating them as they’re already written off and resuming full scale retaliatory measures. That way, the continued holding of the hostages becomes without value to the hostage takers, indeed it turns them into a LIABILITY because continuing to hold them will only ensure further retaliatory measures.

In other words, you turn the table on the hostage takers and fight the battle on YOUR terms rather than THEIRS, the latter always, without exception, being the single most stupid and counterproductive way of fighting a battle.

The Iranian delivery boys carrying bomb parts into Iraq should be quietly intercepted, vigorously interrogated until everything of value has been squeezed out of them, and then …

Tantor on March 27, 2007 at 8:35 PM

And then beheaded, quartered, castrated, and all six parts returned to Iran HQ in five boxes (up to you to figure out the packing). This continues until it ends.

Regarding the hostages, I would be dropping a JDAM every 60 minutes on a different Iranian target until they were released unharmed.

Maybe this post is HA banishment material, but I am not a liberal multiculturalist. I play to win.

What’s so funny about peace, sanctions, and understanding?

Tru2my2 on March 27, 2007 at 10:03 AM

What are you in marriage counseling?

The ONLY thing that works in international politics is force or the threat of force. Everything else has been historically proven to be a waste of time.

I would be willing to bet the commander of HMS Cornwall was ordered not to take any hostile action and allow his sailors to be captured because of some Politically Correct idiot back in Great Britain.

If they had attacked and had taken action we would not be in the position of letting Iran start another show trial with 15 hostages. Instead there would have been two Iranian Gunboats blown out of the water by ship to ship missiles launched by the Cornwall.

It’s going to be a lot worse than people think. I think Iran will do a lot of damage around the region, and this will turn into something way bigger than just a few captured soldiers. We’ve talked about World War 3 and this may be it. Syria…

- The Cat

What’s so funny about peace, sanctions, and understanding?

Tru2my2 on March 27, 2007 at 10:03 AM

Elvis has left the building.

I agree that the preservation of the lives of the soldiers have to be considered forfeit. They’ve spent too much time already with the diplomacy–which Iran, of course, fears not at all and fully anticipated. They’re just giving Iran currency with which to buy whatever they want.

Bomb an empty field for demonstration purposes and then start hitting targets on a published timetable until the boys are released–but it’s Britian’s credibility they really have to play for, not the hostages.

“Who Dares, Wins”

That’s just the problem for Tony Blair: he doesn’t dare send a signal that force is an option to free 15 British hostages, because he – and everybody else, unfortunately – knows that his country isn’t up to the challenge, either militarily or in terms of political will.

How sad to see a once-great nation reduced to little more than mumbling platitudes and vagueries in this way. Lady Thatcher must be consuming sodium bicarbonate by the case right now.

AP, you are off your usual game. We did nothing because GWB was allowing the Europeans, lead by the British, to play out the diplomacy card. We did nothing to provoke Iran because diplomacy was supposed to work this time.

Anton on March 27, 2007 at 11:06 AM

Anton, you are exactly right. Trying to appease the radical left, W let the EU3 have its shot at diplomacy to solve this problem with iran for 3 years. The effort has proven to be a total failure and iran’s theocracy has only grown stronger. Just like the 12 years of appeasement to saddam, negotiation is pointless and futile.

Diplomacy has failed. The sanctions, weak as they currently are, and the internal unrest of the Iranian People are our best hope for avoiding a really ugly hot war with iran.

As I say, though, the key is the timeline. The Times claims our first protest to Iran about the use of EFPs came nearly two years ago, in July 2005. Which presents two exit questions. One, where does this leave the left vis-a-vis its dark hints that EFPs are the 2007 equivalent of Saddam’s WMDs, conjured up by Bush out of the ether as a convenient casus belli? And two, if we’ve known for two years that Iranian weapons are killing U.S. troops, why did we only start targeting Iranian operatives in earnest within the last few months?

AP, you are off your usual game. We did nothing because GWB was allowing the Europeans, lead by the British, to play out the diplomacy card. We did nothing to provoke Iran because diplomacy was supposed to work this time.

The correct response is to treat the 15 Soldiers as if they are already dead. An unfortunate casulty of war.

JayHaw, I would like to see someone with a military strategy background comment on that. It seems to me that this cold and heartless policy would actually reduce the incentive for future hostage-taking; but it does conflict with the ethos of “leave no man behind” cultivated by the US and British military.

Bombs solve everything and they will certainly ensure that Iran does not harm these soldiers.

Instead of bombs, how about we use witless sarcasm? That’ll teach ‘em.

Maybe we should send them a Hallmark card instead. Are there any greeting cards that express the sentiment “Sorry to embarass you by calling attention to your war crimes, you theocratic Iranian f*cks?”

And now we need to print a new run? You have got to be $#@*ing me.

What’d we do last time? Drop bombs? Oh yeah, elect Reagan.