Skip the hype, please, on Iran and consider the reality
I sincerely hope that the media, government officials and the public in general will take a long pause before taking all the latest Iran hype too seriously. One would think that caution would be the order of the day given most recent moral and financial boondoggle of Iraq. Were a general sense of caution (and a well deserved skepticism of government pronouncements) not enough I would implore people to consider a few simple facts about the current state of affairs.
First, Iran has not threatened anyone. The most strident thing they have said is that if attacked, they would respond. Given the United States newly minted right to preemptively strike any nation it desires, in comparison Iran’s position is restrained to say the least.
Second, even Iran’s long-time enemy and neighbor (and quasi-puppet regime of the United States) Iraq has stated they want no part of a strike against Iran and would not participate.
Third, how can Iran’s weapons be considered provocative when another middle eastern country, Israel, has nuclear weapons and has stated an openness to a preemptive strike on Iran.
Fourth, how can we rail at Iran’s meddling in middle eastern affairs (Iraq’s for example) when the United States brought armed forces half way around the world to complete a regime change (of its desire) on Iran’s neighbor. Who is really the intruder in this setting? In addition, informed sources admit that the United States has been covertly involved in operations inside Iran for some time.
Fifth, how can we complain of Iran’s repressive regime when the United States has spent the past five years arresting and imprisoning at will, with no formal charges, thousands of citizens of Iraq who disagree with our presence and/or oppose the regime we installed. What kind of democracy is that?
None of the above even begin to touch on the moral and financial arguments against any military strike on Iran. I can only hope the media especially will not repeat its much regretted rubber stamp of the Iraq invasion. I implore the media to skip the hype, look at all the realities of the situation, encourage exploration of all options and, most of all, not jump on the bandwagon for another war.
Michael D. Colligan
St. Louis
Mike
Are you living in a sealed box? Iranian troops are the ones trying to kill our troops in Iraq. No threat?
How about to Israel http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/07/04/dl0401.xml
How about the nuke threat.
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=111715&d=11&m=7&y=2008
You libs better open your fricken’ eyes.
This ignorant diatribe shows why the Obamamessiah and the deomcrats CANNOT be trusted with national security. They live a delusional fatasy-land:
Point 1 is a baldfaced lie. Iran has threatened israel with nuclear annihilation.
Point 2 is another baldfaced lie. Iraq is an independent and FREE coutry, not the liberal fantasy of a puppet on US strings. So now all foreign policy moves must be approved by Iraq? So what if they wouldn’t participate?
point 3- So what? Israel is surrounded by hostile nations, dedicated to its destruction, that have attacked it several times over the past 50 years. Its nukes are needed for defensive purposes. The crazy Ahmadininutjob who denies the first Holocaust cannot wait to start the second. See also point 1.
point 4 Again, so what? Now our foreign policy must be approved by Tehran? Iran is not welcome in Iraq, we are. Iraqis are heavily engaged with what little is left of al-Qaeda and Iranian terrorist in Iraq.
Point 5 Another baldfaced lie. Any iraqis detained have been detained because of their threat to American forces. They are treated a lot more humanely than prisoners in Evan Prison in Tehran. You should visit it sometime.
http://www.voanews.com/english/About/2008-06-30-voa83.cfm
This election is real simple: if you think that America and george Bush are the greatest threat to the world, vote for Obamamessiah. If you think Islamofascism is the greatest threat, vote for McCain. The simple-mimdednes of this letter is truly scary. Its author is either addled or an Iranian agent. Probably both.
Michael,
Iran has threatened Israel on numerous occasions.
If Iraq is a “puppet regime” of the US, how is it they oppose confronting Iran?
Israel has consistently demonstrated a willingness to live in peace with its neighbors as it does with Egypt and Jordan. Iran has consistently threatened to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.
The United States removed Saddam after the Iraqi government failed to live up to its obligations under the UN-sponsored cease-fire agreement that ended the First Gulf War. Exactly which informed sources are you talking about re America’s alleged actions inside Iran?
Where do you get your statistics re Iraqi citizens imprisoned by the US?
MercMan,
< The United States removed Saddam after the Iraqi government failed to
< live up to its obligations under the UN-sponsored cease-fire agreement
< that ended the First Gulf War. Exactly which informed sources are you
< talking about re America’s alleged actions inside Iran?
Are you saying that your statement above is the reason we invaded Iraq? You really feel that the U.S. was just in removing Saddam Hussein?
My God, no wonder the world hates us.
And tim jones, you sound as if your mind has been wired (programmed).
JD, tim jones and MercMan, why don’t you explain to us how we can take on Iran and Russia. You do realize that if we attack Iran, we just as well have attacked Russia. Then from there tell us how you think things will play out cowboys. JD open your freakin eyes (as you say) and tell us how you see things playing out in that scenario, that will be the first scenario.
Now that has nothing to do with how morally wrong such action on our part would be, or being weak. But show us how smart you guys are tell us how the scenario will play out if we attacked Iran, don’t forget Russia being part of the picture.
I know that we will have bombs dropped onto the U.S. For the first time in our history the U.S. territory will become battle ground and what destruction and devastation it will be for us. You guys have better start programming your minds to think about PEACE.
D. Walker
There you go again. Trying to put words, where I didn’t put them. Did I say anything about “taking on Iran”? Spin, twist and lie. Typical lib bs.
D. Walker, Read your last paragraph is your preceding post. Are blatantly telling lies, or are you ignorant?
JD: the tenor of your statements is that you think we should invade Iran, and that you think Iraq was a brilliant strategic move by a gifted wartime President.
Now, if that is a false statement, then say so. Rather than spending all your time ragging on “Liberals”, why not confront the branch of YOUR party that seems to think triggering Armageddon would be a good idea.
Going to war should always be a last resort. It should never be done without a realistic, sane understanding of the probable cost. At the moment, we lack the material and human capital to invade Iran. Maybe the Iraqis who are counseling against a war with Iran are veterans of the Iran/Iraq war of the 1980’s and might actually know something we don’t.
hs
I never said a word about invading Iran. Really don’t think we will need to. Israel will take care of that problem, and hopefully when they do, they get the Nutjob.
You and D. Walker try and add meaning to the posts that I and others make. As far as “ragging” on liberals, if it walks like a duck, sounds like a duck, it must be a duck. Liberalism is a sickness, that has to be countered, otherwise we will be looking like Europe, with all their failed “liberal” policies.
I do not have a party. I am a conservative that believes we have to carry the “big stick”, and not a toothpick, that liberals so desire.
Most people who subscribe to this forum know me for the limp-wristed, white wine drinking, emasculated, NPR listening liberal that I am. Having confessed that, I must agree with the conservative posters in assessing your world view as somewhat Pollyannish. The essential fact is that all the players in the Middle East have been fighting over the same piece of real estate since about 3500 BCE. I’ve seen the place and I don’t know what all the fuss is about. And yet, you are correct in identifying the good ol’ USA as the aggressor in this current conflict, although I shed no tears for Saddam. The fact remains that any current administration’s explanation of foreign policy for the last six years must begin with the word “Oops.” To assuage your fears, let me assure you that it is highly unlikely Bush will seek his legacy by saddling the next president with a conflict in Iran. Conversely, he does have very little to lose.
To sum up, accept it as fact that none of these guys have working toilets in their countries, let alone nukes. Although they would surely love to. So please stop your posts–your making JD’s head explode.
Johnh,
You say my last paragraph are blatantly lies? Does it hurt your ears hearing the truth?
I guess the only way to find out if I am lying is if we attck Iran and I don’t think that the U.S. is that stupid. Lately, we only go after those who are weak and who can’t really defend themselves with no support from other strong countries.
We have had our big warning from Russia already. Not only have they verbalized it, but also flew their Russian bomber jets (there were so many, the only thing you saw was red dotd all over the radar at U.S. boarders. It was extremely unsettling to see, the U.S. military officials were freaked out. Russia did this because the only thing the Bush adminstration had begiun talking about was attacking Iran. I guess Russia got tired of it. And guess what, it stopped after that incident.
The funny thing is, we did not hear anything in the news about it accept for that moment as it was taking place, then nothing, nothing at all was ever said again about it in the media. Strange.
So johnh, if you and some others are so in denial and are playing some wishful make believe scenario in your heads, fine go ahead, but it still does not change the reality of the fact that if we attack Iran, Russia will attack the U.S. And I guess the strongest will survive. Who do you guys think the strongest will be the U.S. or Russia? That is what it will boil down to.
tim jones,
Don’t know what you are talking about. Show me where I have placed words in your mouth. I do recall attempting to verify what you meant. But, I don’t see where I have placed words in your mouth. Show me.