Defiant Iran–Our Role as Global Policeman

It seems that Iran is going to miss another 60 day deadline set by UN Security Council.  Our navy is performing war games in the Strait of Hormuz (the entrance to the Persian Gulf) with two aircraft carriers and their escorts.  The new president of France is pro-United States; the current Iranian president is a hard-line wacko who endeavors to appeal to the more conservative elements of the Islamic population.

In light of this, what is our role as a global policeman?

Cheap power provides the infrastructure to continue to modernize a country.  Modernization works in our favor; populations clamor for a Western lifestyle, whatever their religious convictions might be.  Cheap power also provides the backbone for industry.  Gather enough industry in one place, and the pressures of selling to a free market will force some degree of liberalism on a country (as illustrated by China and southeast Asia).  Thus, if their intentions are innocent, providing Iran with cheap, nuclear power might not be a bad option for the nations of the west.  But who really believes that a fundamentalist Islamic government has innocent intentions?  History strongly indicates that this people group has poor impulse control.  Couple this with a thousand year old grudge against another nation in their backyard (Israel), and who would trust that sort of government with a weapon of mass destruction? 

Our best option is to wait for them to become more like us. Unfortunately, we may not have the luxury of time. Placing the destructive power of a nuclear warhead into the hands of a government not terribly more advanced than the fourteenth century is tantamount to giving a toddler some matches and a can of gasoline. We cannot afford the instability and insecurity that such a development would involve.

Americans are already feeling the economic pressure of high oil prices. If we cannot muster the moral courage to fight for freedom for the men and women of Iran, then we should at least own up to the fact that we want gas to go back to less than $2.00 per gallon. I’m willing to let us choose a selfish foreign policy as long as it provides a chance for the people of the Middle East to breathe easy. No one should have to live in the shadow of oppressive religious fundamentalism or tyranny, and if it takes our pursuit of cheap gas to fuel our SUVs to give them their shot at freedom, then I’m on board.

As it stands, Iran can place a stranglehold on shipping in and out of the Persian Gulf. Our naval presence there is a not-so-subtle reminder that while an essential resource may have the potential to be controlled by hostile nation-state, we have the power to protect our national interests and the willingness to use that power to ensure their safety. All we lack is the resolve of our body politic.

What I find absolutely disheartening about this situation are those that cry about national soverignity. These are the same people that will later blame the governments of the West for not intervening in a dangerous situation when they had the oportunity to do so. If our sole option should prove to be military, our current leadership is damned if they do…and damned if they don’t. Personally, I’m completely in favor of keeping this sort of technology out of the hands of governments that tacitly approve the actions of terror organizations around the world…however that can be accomplished.