There's a discussion going on at BlogsCanada about a bit of a dust up from some comments made by an Iranian mullah, Abdullah Irani, of Qum regarding offers of earthquake relief from the US. ABC News quotes him as saying, "We hate the arrogance of the Americans and we are sure that they haven't come for humanitarian reasons, but for other things like spying."
Gosh. Quelle surprise, and all like that there. I'm shocked, shocked to the core, to learn that Iran's religious nutbars wear blinders just as big and bulky and firmly affixed as those festooning Pat Robertson's head, and are just as willing as American politicos to make hay while the sun's shining.
The article also quotes Bush:
Bush, shortly after the Dec. 26 tragedy, said he was glad the Iranians had accepted U.S. assistance, a rare bit of cooperation between the two nations since their relations were broken by the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.
But the president added: "The Iranian government must listen to the voices of those who long for freedom, must turn over al-Qaida that are in their custody and must abandon their nuclear weapons program."
To me, that statement does unfortunately politicize the American quake relief efforts, and it's no surprise that some national Iranian figures have responded in kind. I think it's important to remember that if the people shooting off their mouths have not lost friends or families in the quake, then there's no point paying them any attention. And if they have, then there's no point criticizing them. Chalk it up to pain and suffering, and be glad no buildings have fallen on you today.
