Weblogs and news agencies will be closely tracking events in Iran as the mullocracy blatantly shows its contempt for human liberty and dignity by holding sham elections and squelching protest. Amir Taheri writes in the New York Post with some powerful, if ugly, truths:
For its part, the Bush administration needs to develop a coherent analysis of the Iranian situation. It must decide whether or not Iran is, in the words of the State Department's No. 2, Richard Armitage, a "sort of democracy," or a despotic regime using religion and violence to remain in power.Short-term realpolitik may counsel an accommodation with the present regime in Tehran, much as it has determined Washington's China policy. But that would mean the premature death of President Bush's ambitious plan for "a new Middle East." It would also give the Islamic Republic time to assemble an arsenal of nuclear weapons, and other weapons of mass destruction, which the Tehran leadership regards as its best insurance policy.
Taheri calls this the "death of illusion." We can only hope that for Washington and President Bush's diplomatic agents, this is the death of complacency. Instapundit has more, and will likely add several links as the day passes.