Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA), who’s a retired Vice Admiral, says the Navy’s response to the Iranian provocation in the Straits of Hormuz over the weekend was the right response, and was the result of training and restraint. I tend to agree, but thought I’d toss this video out to the squids in the readership to get their take. To me, the boats were clearly trying to provoke a response and may have been trying to create Iran’s own Gulf of Tonkin incident. The timing, coming as it did so close to President Bush’s visit to the Middle East, is no accident. In any case, as long as the boats stayed some distance from the destroyers they were no threat, and if they had gotten close enough to become a threat, the destroyers would have sunk them without much trouble. I have no doubt of that.
But I’m a zoomie, so what do I know?
As things stand, the Iranians have annoyed the French as well as the US. In years past that wouldn’t matter much, but Sarkozy isn’t your average French president. Personally I’d take him over Gordon Brown in a fight any day.
Update: To no one’s surprise, HuffPoster doesn’t buy the US version of the Straits incident. But if you ask him, I’m sure he supports the military. Well, he supports a military.
Update: Mike Goldfarb also takes a look a that HuffPoster’s piffle. I think we can all agree that a record producer’s word ought to carry more weight on a military matter than the Pentagon or a retired admiral. Right?
Update: Very interesting military analysis here. He makes a very good point about being lulled toward complacency by actions like these.
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