In a post on the Guardian's Comment is Free blog, Matthew Yglesias comes to the conclusion that the resolution of the British hostage crisis is somehow a success for "doves." Mocking critics of the Iranian regime's shameful p.r. theatrics as "warmongers" (an epithet he uses with wild abandon) Yglesias writes:

Disappointed though the hawks may be, the fact that the crisis arose in the first place illustrates the continuing dangers posed by the Bush administration's policies of confrontation. ... But if the crisis illustrates the dangers of the current situation, its successful resolution illustrates the potential for improvements.

How, exactly, was the Bush administration responsible for the Iranians' blatantly illegal seizure of British sailors in international waters? Perhaps Yglesias would like to explain how Bush is at fault for Iran's hanging gay teenagers two years ago. Yes, we're all happy that this crisis ended with the British troops returning home safely. But Yglesias cannot even bring himself to concede that the Iranian's cynical piracy (and their trotting the self-flagellating soldiers out on international television) are sources of major humiliation for the West, regardless of one's thoughts about the Bush Administration (as usual, the The Daily Telegraph has the best leader on this point). Everyone comes out great, in Yglesias' analysis. Judging the resolution of this spectacle a "success" reveals a serious naiveté about how dictatorships work. --James Kirchick