Imagine you are a proud parent of a 22 year-old daughter. One day, your daughter reveals that she has fallen in love with 'Mr. Right' and wants you to invite him over for dinner..
If you are a mother, you are likely intrigued. If you are a father, your first thought is, 'Where did I put my baseball bat?' Far from being violent, the father is simply musing about his strong paternal desire to protect his daughter from being used by a self-indulgent man. While somewhat skeptical, he agrees to meet the young lad.
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The big day arrives. At 7:30pm, the daughter walks into her parents home, but it is different this time. She is not alone. Rather, she enters arm-in-arm with her new love.
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She sits down with the 'love of her life' at the dinner table and begins to introduce her 'soulmate'. The parents are told his name is Mahmoud. By all appearances, he seems fine - short hair, nice smile, gentle manner - and he even wears an expensive sport jacket.
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The father leans over, and after saying 'It's a pleasure to meet you', asks the following standard question, 'So, tell us something about yourself. What are your future plans?'
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Mahmoud seems thrilled to be able to answer the father's question. Indeed, he is looking forward to making an unforgettable impression on his girlfriend's (soon fiance's) parents. He then begins his comments.
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Mahmoud smiles and says, 'Thank you for inviting me here for dinner. I love and respect your daughter, and I hope I can receive your blessing to continue seeing her. As far as my future plans are concerned, I need to tell you about my job first. As the President of Iran, I have presided over the systematic destruction of the rights of women and minorities. In June of this year, I was honored to have the opportunity to fix our national elections in Iran and to subsequently throw mass numbers our citizens in jail without a right to counsel. On my watch, men and women have been arrested, tortured and murdered for the sake of God's will, and I hope to continue this path - God willing. Over the next few years, I intend to carry my campaign of terror worldwide. Am I a mere domestic servant? I think not. That is why I'm currently building enough nuclear capability to 'wipe Israel off the map' and to possibly use nukes against 'The Great Satan' - The United States. My first priority is to murder all the Jews, however, as I'm tired of their lies about a Holocaust that never happened. Apart from that, I like reading books and watching old episodes of Howdy Doody. Those old shows never get old!'
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Imagine again you are the father or mother at the dinner table. Here is a quiz.
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After hearing the Mahmoud's diatribe, what should you do?
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a) Politely agree with him and allow your daughter to 'work it out'
b) Tell him it is 'an honor' to meet him as you prepare for a physical embrace
c) Stand up, order him out of the house and forbid your daughter to ever see him again
d) Ask your spouse where the baseball bat is and discuss who goes first
e) Ask Mahmoud if Howdy Doody is available on Blu-Ray discs
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The correct answer is (C) - although (D) is tempting. That, however, was not the answer recorded by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio 'Lula' da Silva (born October 1945) last week.
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Lula actually chose (B). Indeed, the Brazilian president called it 'an honor' to meet Ahmadinejad and physically embraced him prior to walking his guest through an official state visit. What is Lula doing?
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While Lula has met with polarizing and sometimes unscrupulous figures in past years (i.e. Hugo Chavez, Raul Castro) to conduct Brazilian foreign policy from a neutralist stance, there simply is no neutral ground to be taken on genocide, tyranny and misogyny.
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As Lula was instrumental in establishing a workers party and bringing down a dictatorship in his own country, his welcoming of Ahmadinejad is all the more puzzling.
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The analysis is very simple. Either Lula is prone to unacceptable lapses of moral and political judgment, or he has become corrupted by power - exhibiting a hubris detrimental to sound government.
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Regardless, Brazil deserves a better leader - one who stands on ethical principles rather than one who legitimizes tyrannical leaders. Therefore, Brazilians need to ask for his resignation before his current term ends in 2011.
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Brazil was recently awarded the Olympic Games in 2016. The Olympic committee may wish to reconsider and ask the Brazilian government to denounce Iran for its gross violations of human rights in the last year in order to retain its hosting status.
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As far as Lula is concerned, it is time to go. Why remain in office and further disgrace an otherwise worthy political career? It is time for Brazilians to send e-mails to their government with the following first line, 'Dear Lula, Please resign.'
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For Lula, there will be life after politics. All those Howdy Doody episodes are just waiting to be watched.
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(Photo: Lula embraces Ahmadinejad)
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J Roquen