Alan Colmes was berating Laura Ingrahm last night on Hannity & Colmes because she was talking about Iran’s history of hostage taking as a form of international diplomacy. [note: this is the first time I have caught the show since last fall]. Colmes was naively saying Iran had ‘moderated’ its rhetoric and Ingrahm, and those of us like her, was the one escalating the situation. Well someone has indirectly come out today and supplied the crow for Colmes’ feast:

WHEN in doubt, take a few hostages: This axiom of Khomeinist diplomacy was, once again, manifested in the capture of 15 British sailors in the Persian Gulf last Friday.

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The Brits based in Basra have often strayed into waters that Iran regards as its own; Iranians have also often passed into Iraqi waters.

In other words, these are almost daily incidents. The standard procedure is to warn the trespassers and guide them back to their own side of the water. If that procedure was abandoned this time, the reason must be someone’s desire to provoke an incident.

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Ever since it erupted on the scene, the Khomeinist revolution has always accompanied a hardening of its position by seizing hostages. In November 1979, just eight months after seizing power, the Khomeinist regime endorsed the seizure of American diplomats as hostages in Tehran.

During the following quarter-century, the Islamic Republic was involved in seizing more than 1,000 hostages from more than 30 countries in Iran or through its Hezbollah agents in Lebanon. These included a French ambassador to Tehran, Guy Georgy, two German bankers and eight American and French journalists – plus dozens of businessmen, priests and tourists from countries as far apart as South Korea and Italy. Right now, in addition to the 15 Brits, the Islamic Republic is holding a German hostage.

Western apologists for the Khomeinist regime have already started blaming the United States for having made the mullahs nervous. The argument of the apologists is simple: Don’t do anything that makes the mullahs unhappy, or else they will do more mischief.

Colmes and others on the left shaking in their boots are doing EXACTLY what Tehran wants them to do when faced with the abductions – sue for terms. The fact is the left crumbles time and time again. Instead of making the hard decisions they go for appeasement, which invites more kidnappings and escalations of threats – because they work. The appeasers are willing to risk anyone so they don’t have to stand up, confront and attack if necessary. That is the ear-mark of the appeaser. You become a victim so they can avoid hard decisions.