After a group of Iranian patrol boats seized a merchant ship flying the flag of the Marshall Islands, the U.S. Navy announced it was going to start escorting U.S. ships through the Strait of Hormuz. The narrow strip of water connecting the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf is very close to Iranian territorial waters, and Iranian patrols have often asserted themselves in the strait. In one instance last week, four Iranian patrol boats followed a U.S.-flagged boat before veering away. According to The Wall Street Journal a U.S. official said the move by the Navy was just to deter Iran: “Out of an abundance of caution, because of the unpredictability of our Iranian friends, we’re now positioned so that, should the Iranians decide that they’re going to be stupid, we’re ready to respond.” And while the Obama administration acts like the relationship with Iran is thawing, that it’s perfectly safe to strike a handshake nuclear deal with the country, the U.S. Navy and American ship captains know that the country is playing an aggressive game to exert control over the waterways of the Middle East, which is telling. More…