June 20, 2009
Notes

American Mettle

Vice President Joe Biden and Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr (right) review equipment donated to the Lebanese Army by the United States at the Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, May 22, 2009.  Official White House Photo by David Lienemann

All I know is, with the Iran election standoff turning bloody, I’m looking at this photo in a different way than I did last week.

The image, from a slideshow on the White House website of Biden’s trip last month to the Middle East, shows the Veep with Lebanese Defense Minister Murr and equipment quote-unquote “donated” by the U.S. to the Lebanese Army.

It’s not that I’m advocating a full bore U.S. military defense of the Iranian reformers. I am wondering, however, how long before the Iranian tanks come out and how far the situation has to go before a more vigorous American effort does merit deployment in the name of democracy.

(image: David Lienemann/White House. Rafic Hariri International Airport, Beirut, Lebanon. May 22, 2009)

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Michael Shaw
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