Just finished reading an article posted in the Washington Times by former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. In his article, he claims to have touched base with members of the Israeli Knesset, Israeli Rabbis, Arab Israelis, Christian Israelis, and Muslim merchants. He claims that the Israeli population take the Iranian development of nuclear weapons and their threat to wipe Israel off the map with greater seriousness than does the Obama administration. Well, duh!!!!
He has a problem with U.S. General Martin Dempsey’s characterization of Iran as a “rational actor.” Of course Huckabee has little to no idea what “rational actor” is within the context of the Dempsey statement. After a long discourse on the claims made by the Iranian government, i.e., denying the Holocaust, hanging some Christian pastor, phony elections, and shooting civilians in the streets during protest, Huckabee cites this behavior as evidence of the Iranians being not rational; such a country is “recklessly dangerous” according to this foreign policy specialist.:-
Of course from Mr. Huckabee’s description, it is clear that he has little to no idea what the term “rational actor” means. In the realm of international politics and affairs, a “rational actor” is a state that behaves in its own best interest. That is; a state will not do something that is not in its best interest, and that includes decisions to go to war, instigate a nuclear war if the results may mean its own self destruction. A nation may threaten such behavior if it is likely to gain some strategic point. Consider the North Korean behavior where they will acquire food from the U.S. for cessation of its nuclear development. For Iran, at some point, their threats wiill have little effect especially as the sanctions continue to tighen.
What Huckabee fails to understand is the deterrent effect of nuclear weapons, especially if two states have nuclear weapons and are confronting one another. The U.S. – USSR history of Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) should inform this would-be foreign policy expert. He and his ilk should get off of the “scare” box and get real about what is going on in that part of the world. Mr. Huckabee might want to be concerned by reports that the Israeli government will not warn the U.S. in event it should strike Iranian nuclear cites. Why does this clown fail to address this possibility. It is about time that American spokespersons begin to consider these possibilities and the implications that fall from Israeli behavior.
