The ridiculous Anne Lamott, who is one of those idiots who passes for thoughtful and contemplative on the religious Left (like Brain McLaren, Walter Wink and Jim Wallis), wrote this bit of deluded prose last November for Salon:
My son voted for the first time, and Obama’s victory means he won’t be drafted to fight in Iran.
It was funny even then, in a dark and stupid kind of way, given that Lamott has clearly not paid attention to anything the Mahatma has ever said about Iran. But let’s let bygones be bygones, shall we? Given all the talk of late among policy making elites and members of congress about the need for a new draft, I wonder what Lamott might make of this bit of nonsense to come out of the White House?
Little more than a year after U.S. spy agencies concluded that Iran had halted work on a nuclear weapon, the Obama administration has made it clear that it believes there is no question that Tehran is seeking the bomb.
In his news conference this week, President Obama went so far as to describe Iran’s “development of a nuclear weapon” before correcting himself to refer to its “pursuit” of weapons capability.
Obama’s nominee to serve as CIA director, Leon E. Panetta, left little doubt about his view last week when he testified on Capitol Hill. “From all the information I’ve seen,” Panetta said, “I think there is no question that they are seeking that capability.”
The language reflects the extent to which senior U.S. officials now discount a National Intelligence Estimate issued in November 2007 that was instrumental in derailing U.S. and European efforts to pressure Iran to shut down its nuclear program.
Given that Obama has stated quite publicly that the United States must prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons (or a nuclear weapons capability, depending on what the Mahatma actually meant in that most recent inspired utterance), and that voices demanding a draft (or some kind of “national service” [sic]) are getting louder these days, the corner Obama has painted himself (‘scuse me, us) into is war with Iran. That is, after all, the logical conclusion to “Iran is trying to get nuclear weapons” and “we must do everything we can to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.”
So, I wonder if Lamott will oppose this war or not, should it come? Will it matter to her (and to other deluded progressives who gushed about the Mahatma’s elevation to the presidency) that it’s an allegedly progressive black man bombing a third world country? Does that make the killing better? The war more noble? Show us as decent, kind, and progressive people? Would she, however awkwardly and uncomfortably, wave a flag and “support the troops?”
I’d rather not know the answers to any of these questions. I’d rather her son not get drafted either. But I’m afraid we’re most likely going to find out.
11:01 am on February 13, 2009
