General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Why are DUers buying into this crap about Iran from the corporate media? [View all]Lydia Leftcoast
(48,217 posts)Years ago, I heard Jimmy Carter speak, and when someone asked him why he wasn't more aggressive in getting the hostages back, he replied that he had consulted experts on Iranian culture, who had told him that in that culture, anyone who backs down against a direct public threat loses face. He therefore switched to behind-the-scenes negotiations through third countries, with the added warning (not public, but through channels) that he would bomb Tehran if the hostages were harmed.
Note that none of the hostages were harmed. In fact, when one of them began developing strange neurological symptoms, the Iranians sent him home, not wanting to risk his dying in their custody. (He turned out to have multiple sclerosis.)
What is happening now looks like a direct provocation on the part of the U.S. It's as if they're deliberately trying to poke that particular hornet's nest so as to give the military-industrial complex an excuse to make more money.
This will not end well for either side.