Politics and Culture

Trudy Rubin thinks Mahmoud Ahmadinejad isn't like Hitler. Why? He said so. Well, good enough for me. I remember Hitler speeches where he insisted he wasn't like Hitler. Maybe she meant Mahmoud Ahmadinejad didn't share the Fuhrer's like of pastry and animals? No, here:

The overwhelming sense I had from the dinner was of opportunities being squandered to improve U.S.-Iranian relations. But is Ahmadinejad another Hitler, as some neoconservatives charge? Hold the question. First, have a look at what he said...

Follow up:

...More to the point, Ahmadinejad has nothing like Hitler's power. He never replied to my second question: "Who really makes foreign and security policy in Iran?" Those decisions aren't his, but are made by Iran's supreme clerical leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Ahmadinejad's popularity is dropping at home because he hasn't delivered on economic promises (although insults hurled at him in America may boost his standings). Many observers think he will lose in 2009 elections.

Frustrating he is, because his rhetoric inflames tensions and gives ammo to politicians who want military action. But Hitler he is not.

Oh, and he kills American soldiers and supports people who target Muslim kids and Jews of all ages (Trudy Rubin).

As if it matters whether he makes the decisions. Who really cares about Mahmoud's personal character? We don't want to know if he's suitable marriage material. We just care whether Iran wants to blow countries up.

And then there's:

Ahmadinejad's orations on religion are clearly central to his thinking. He stresses his hope for the return of the Mahdi, the savior in Shiite Islam. Some analysts argue he might want to speed that return by destroying Israel (just as some Protestant fundamentalists yearn for Armageddon in Israel to bring on the End Time).

Is this true? Is Rubin that stupid? Protestants might want the return of Jesus, but do they themselves want to hasten it? In other words, do protestants want to kill people to start the process? That would be anti-Christian. And since the Bible says that the end is unpredictable and NOT subject to human manipulation, isn't that against Christianity as well? Isn't that the only relevant point? Wow! Breathtaking foolishness.