That is the main point-a US President cannot be perceived as weak-that merely opens the door for extortion and terrorism. Much as Clinton’s passivity emboldened Osama Ben laden. Had Carter ordered a devastating airstrike, the hostage thing would have been over in a week. Carter thought that the world leaders he was dealing with shared his values (honesty, decency), and forgot that most of them came to power by being gangsters and killers.