The perfect excuse....?

Here's a disturbing story that's sure to cause consternation to those who are convinced that the administration is just looking for an excuse to launch another invasion*. Condi did a little tough-talking aimed at the Iranians during her most recent tour, and suddenly this gem pops up:

A quarter-century after they were taken captive in Iran, five former American hostages say they got an unexpected reminder of their 444-day ordeal in the bearded face of Iran's new president-elect.

Watching coverage of Iran's presidential election on television dredged up 25-year-old memories that prompted four of the former hostages to exchange e-mails.

And those four realized they shared the same conclusion -- the firm belief that President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had been one of their Iranian captors.

"This is the guy. There's no question about it," said former hostage Chuck Scott, a retired Army colonel who lives in Jonesboro, Georgia.

"You could make him a blond and shave his whiskers, put him in a zoot suit and I'd still spot him."

Scott and former hostages David Roeder, William J. Daugherty and Don A. Sharer told The Associated Press on Wednesday they have no doubt Ahmadinejad, 49, was one of the hostage-takers.

Gee, I haven't heard this much conviction since the run-up to Iraq. There are doubters, though. Recommended reading-- this could be the beginning of something big.

Thanks to OD1 for staying on top of things while I'm sending off zany e-mails to Stephanie Miller. He's the man.

* I admit to being a little worried, but given the way things are going in Iraq, the administration would have to be absolutely bat-shit crazy to try and launch another ground war in the Middle East at this point. And although they might be evil ideologues, they're not just flat-out insane. Uhhhhh..... right?
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UPDATE: Hey, conspiracy hedz! I can't believe that I'd already forgotten about the Iranian claims that Bush's flippant remarks about their elections had helped to install a hard-line Islamic regime. That should really give you the willies when you consider this piece of news. For my part, call me a fool, but I still don't think that even this administration is capable of so brilliant an evil scheme. Check out Americablog for another look at how Bush might have influenced the elections in favor of the forces of religious fundamentalism (all right, so it wouldn't be the first time....)