PRESIDENT Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has sought to justify his confidence the US will not attack Iran, saying the proof comes from his mathematical skills as an engineer and faith in God, the press reported today.
Mr Ahmadinejad told academics in a speech that elements inside Iran were pressing for compromise in the nuclear standoff with the West over fears the US could launch a military strike.
"In some discussions I told them 'I am an engineer and I am examining the issue. They do not dare wage war against us and I base this on a double proof'," he said in the speech yesterday, reported by the reformist Etemad Melli and Kargozaran newspapers.
"I tell them: 'I am an engineer and I am a master in calculation and tabulation.
"I draw up tables. For hours, I write out different hypotheses. I reject, I reason. I reason with planning and I make a conclusion. They cannot make problems for Iran."'
Mr Ahmadinejad has long expressed pride in his academic prowess. He holds a PhD on transport engineering and planning from Tehran's Science and Technology University and is the author several of scientific papers.
The deeply religious President said his second reason was: "I believe in what God says."
"God says that those who walk in the path of righteousness will be victorious. What reason can you have for believing God will not keep this promise."
Washington has never ruled out taking military action against Tehran, and its tone has sharpened again over the past week with US President George W. Bush warning that Iran's nuclear programme could lead to a "nuclear holocaust."
Mr Ahmadinejad said that "God willing" one day he would write his memoirs to put the record straight.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has already warned that Iran risks being bombed if the nuclear crisis is not resolved. Mr Ahmadinejad last week brushed off the comments which he said were due to his French counterpart's inexperience.
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Bush believes he was called by God to lead the nation at this time, says Commerce Secretary Don Evans, a close friend who talks with Bush every day. His history degree from Yale makes him mindful of the importance of the moment. He knows he's making "history-changing decisions," Evans says. But Bush doesn't keep a diary or other personal record of the events that will form his legacy. Aides take notes, but there's no stenographer in most meetings, nor are they videotaped or recorded. In the first days of the conflict, the president's aides said he was leaving the details of war planning to his generals. Then, fearing that he might seem too uninvolved, they began describing him as interested in all the specifics.
That's how the White House message has shifted, but the bottom line is that Bush is an active manager and defender of the war plan. He and Rumsfeld spread out maps of the war zone in their meetings. Bush wants to know where U.S. troops are, where they're headed, what weapons are being used and how the enemy is faring. He rebukes and then bucks up aides who question the tactics, pace or human costs of the war.
that article is from April '03....
Strain of Iraq war showing on Bush, those who know him say By Judy Keen, USA TODAY Posted 4/2/2003 4:02 PM
WASHINGTON — The public face of President Bush at war is composed and controlled. On TV and in newspaper photos, he is sturdy and assured, usually surrounded by military personnel. But those choreographed glimpses of Bush's commander-in-chief persona don't tell the whole story. Behind the scenes, aides and friends say, the president's role is more complicated and his style more emotional.
On March 17, before he delivered a 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam, Bush summoned congressional leaders to the White House. They expected a detailed briefing, but the president told them he was notifying them only because he was legally required to do so and then left the room. They were taken aback, and some were annoyed. They were just as surprised by his buoyant mood two days later at another White House meeting.
At a news conference Thursday at Camp David with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush couldn't contain his annoyance at a reporter who asked if the war might last for months. "However long it takes," Bush said sharply. "That's the answer to your question, and that's what you've got to know."
Bush copes with anxiety as he always has. He prays and exercises. Evans says his friend has a placid acceptance of challenges that comes from his Christian faith.
"He knows that we're all here to serve a calling greater than self," Evans says. "That's what he's committed his life to do. He understands that he is the one person in the country, in this case really the one person in the world, who has a responsibility to protect and defend freedom."
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise. Posts: 36378 | From: USA | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Most if not all world leaders are religious morons who all claim their god is telling them their view or actions are right... What could go wrong? Move along... nothing to see here folks.
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posted
god is a dangerous tool to justify actions... you can justify anything with god
Posts: 1091 | From: Brugge, Belgium / Dallas TX USA | Registered: May 2006
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