First, let me state that I'm an American citizen who has tremendous respect for Britain. You are a friend and an ally. The fact that your countrymen have been kidnapped, and are essentially being held hostage by the terrorist nation of Iran, angers me to no end. I can't express this enough.
That said, I believe the response from your nation has been very weak. The response should have been a stern one from the get go. An ultimatum should have been given. "Return our men by x amount of time or else ____ " The only diplomacy here should have been through the barrels of your battleships as you systematically destroy Iran's navy until your men are returned. If that isn't enough, then move on to their air force. Then their military. etc.
As the old saying goes... "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." Well Britain, you have just been fooled twice and it appears this will play out exactly like the last time Iran took you as hostage. You'll be humiliated and appear even weaker than before.
My question is this: what is the perception of this in Britain? Is there a call for diplomacy, is there ANY pressure to tear the hell out of Iran on principle alone? What's the general mood? Why is your response so damned WEAK? Is there any realization what-so-ever that this sort of thing will keep happening unless STERN action is taken? |