The Revolutionary Council is rolling the dice in Tehran again. They did this by trying to mine the Straits of Hormuz back in the 80’s, which lost them a couple of ships and oil rigs. The difference was that they were testing the mettle of that buckaroo, Ronald Reagan, who was itchin’ to pull the trigger. Today, they are shooting rubber bands at Tony Blair, knowing Britain is even less enthused about the war in Iraq than the U.S. is.
My guess is this is act one of a high-school musical gone bad, in which the next act would include an attempt to take an American crew hostage. Iran is slowly ratcheting up its intervention in Iraq, and (were I a betting man) I would put big money on increased pressure to push the U.S. and Britain out of the region.
Whether you liked “The Gipper” or not, his immediate, strong response set the Iranians back on their heels for a while. The old men in Tehran have let their heads get a little large for their baseball caps; take the gloves off, and watch ‘em retreat.
For all the bluster about virgins in paradise, these old men are not eager to meet their reward. They will blink.
