New Delhi, May 7 -- In global politics, the 'double standard' is a favorite talking point. Critics ask: if the U.S. and other powers keep nuclear weapons for self-defense, why is Iran denied the same? On the surface, it sounds like a plea for fairness. But this argument ignores a fundamental truth: a weapon is only as dangerous as the intent of the hand holding it.

To understand why Iran is the exception, we must examine what I call the internal brakes of a nation. In a democracy, the people, the press, and the law act as a fail-safe against suicidal decisions. The Iranian regime operates in a different category entirely - one where those brakes have been deliberately cut, and where ideological martyrdom is valued above national survival...