European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 7, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Dune stars and stripes Page 17 Iran actions ensure Axis tag will stick its not and were not watching it every night on but Iran has taken hostages does anyone care the sounds of lop6z near silence out of Washington Sug not As much As we May the tyrannical regime in Tehran Mally de a 67yearold grand Moth Haleh not a Sailor or Marine like the 15 brits Iran held hostage earlier this Spring Esfandiari is a Beltway policy wonk she is director of the Middle East program at the Woodrow Wil son Center for International schol she was forbidden exit from the Mulla Cracy in where she had been to visit her sick at the her passports were and Shes spent 2007 under House arrest and is now in the hellish Evin the regime says Shes a Pawn of the evil Neo con Bush administrations plot to take Over Esfandiari is not the Ameri can recently taken hostage by her prison mate is another supposed american spy Kian a sociologist from the open society Institute a new York group that promotes demo Iran has also detained a peace Ali and a Parinaz Azima from the persian version of radio free eur a fifth Ameri can is missing there Robert a former Fri you can imagine what they think of that a number of these americans do not exactly sound like Likely members of the Mastright Winglewish conspiracy to do zionist and ugly Ameri can bidding Means nothing to the terror regime in which thrives on death to America and death to Israel the news of the Shakeri arrest came Down from the state depart ment Days after the United states held talks with Iran for the first time in 25 while i dont have easy answers ready for How to solve the problem that is a Uncle jihadist i also have the hardest time squaring these Degoti with president Bush Brave and morally Clear insistence of youre either with us or against he named Iran As part of an Axis of evil that encourages terrorism against american citizens of the sort we saw when jihadists killed some americans on our none too far from where i work and As its humiliation of Britain ear Lier this year Iran is clearly in the mood to test How far it can go How much the United nations and the United states will let it get away the answer appears to pretty a recent re port from the International atomic Energy Agency tells us that Over the course of a Iran has gone from 164 centrifuges to maybe by years end Clear we have no time to be Messing in All for diplomacy in with Iran the coun try fomenting violence against our troops and allies in Iraq the coun try that wants to wipe Israel off the map the country that answers our diplomatic Olive branches with hostage taking but were in diplomatic Mode a Mode with Tajbakhsh and Levinson on our minds should have All americans nervous and praying that the Bush administration is work ing on something Good its keeping close to the praying that officials Are As sceptical of Iran As they should praying that they Are willing to put in place a Debili Tating sanctions policy and Send Clear signals of support to the Good men and women of Iran who want another kind of life free of the terrorists who run the Bush has had his Good moments of leadership on a big believer in the yearning of All men and women for Hes sent signs to the democracy activists and dissidents in some them being held in the same Evin prison some of our american com patriots Are in right As far As we they Are not get Ting the help they need from the the state department presumably wont be As outraged As it should be by the abduction of american citizens because officials care about engaging those who would rather tall about death to somethings got to and it better be us Mak ing them do the one Way or Kathryn Lopez is National review online quite a coup that military stays in the Barracks ombudsman David Mazzarella recently i As a the annual Congress of the International press Institute Ipi in Stan the Ipi is a world wide network of editors and publishers dedicated to the cause of press natural there was quite a bit of discussion about de which coun tries practice it and which do not be cause you cant have Freedom of the press without Many of those that do not practice or have not at times in the or practice it Only Are characterized by Mili tary institutions that have been known to come out of the that they initiate and take Over the it struck me that one of the things we take for granted in our own great country is the is since the founding of the re pub of a proper role for the it serves civilian not the other Way in Turkey was especially in Many it is a full Democrat with free elections and a generally free but every so when it deems the civilian government is hot doing a Good the army Steps it conducted four coups Between 1960 and each time giving the government Back to civilians after a period of a nato member and Host to is a predominantly Muslim but it has been a secular one since the no islamic religious involvement in govern no mandatory veils for and so but the openly elected govern ment is run by politicians from a former islamist and the secularists fear that Down the Road those in Power will Start enacting islamist rules and the military is strongly the talk at Ipi was about what happens if the islamic influenced which has strongly pledged support for secular ins Titu nevertheless goes too far Down the path of will the army decide to Cut it Short Douglas managing editor of the los Angeles hosted a panel discus Sion at he said that when he took Over As Istanbul correspondent some years this is How turkish democracy was de scribed to him imagine a Busload of people on a Highway the passengers Are the Citi the Driver symbolizes the and the guardrails Are the if the bus swerves too far in either guardrails Stop several panel including a turkish academic and a newspaper said civil society in Turkey want All that Strong the implication was that it needed shoring up at Ertugrul editor of the leading Hur said his first reaction upon hearing about last which followed unrest that led to was a participant from Thailand got a Rise out of the audience when he said that his coun had an overactive it held a coup last supplanting a democratically elected government beset by allegations of like the turkish Mili the officers in Thailand historically have voluntarily allowed the country to re Vert to democratic elections after other regimes have been less willing to give up across the water from Greece was ruled by a military Junta from 1967 to its end coming Only after student riots and turkeys invasion of the contested is land of Myanmar formerly Burma has been ruled militarily for nearly two de Pakistan had a military coup in 1999 and its Pervez still holds the title of another South has had military the last one 25 years in 59 countries had a history of military coups i the 20th there Are 19 such countries in latin Ameri where Many dictatorships came to an end in the in the United the military is governed by starting with the presi who is also commander in chief of the armed the Secretary of defense is i so secure Are we in the appropriate positioning of the military within society that we countenance the appointment of a military air Force Michael As director of the Central Intelli gence we have shown no hesitation to elect former military icons to the presidency from Washington to Grant to Eisenhowe but what the first of those gentlemen and the founding fathers established As the role of the military in America has there have been no strange love the military stays in the got a question or suggestion for the ombudsman on what or should in stars and stripes Send an email to , or phone 2027610945 in the to our readers Dave Mazzarella readers blog can be found at prickly City by Scott Stantis in my two vow Loyl