Before We Bomb Iran
Debra Burlingame says there's got to be a better way to confront Iran. Her brother Charles F. (Chic) Burlingame was the captain of American Airlines Flight 77, the airliner hijacked and flown into the Pentagon on 9/11. Since then, Ms. Burlingame can't get over our failure to fight a smarter war on terror, a war that wouldn't get more people killed. "We should be using all the tools we have -- including our enormous wealth -- to prevent our enemies from coming after us," she says. So she, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Sam Brownback, among others at the state and local level, have identified a powerful tool -- a grass-roots and bipartisan campaign to "divest" from Iran, just as the international community divested from South Africa's apartheid regime in the 1970s and '80s.
This time, the stakes are higher. In last week's presidential debate in Detroit, John McCain said offhandedly that military action is "closer to reality than we're discussing today." While Condi Rice and Bob Gates seem to have prevailed for now in urging caution, Dick Cheney is not yet down for the count; bombing Iran is still an option. Norman Podhoretz, Rudy Giuliani's wise man on foreign policy, recently met with President Bush and strongly argued for war. The relative silence that greeted the recent Israeli bombing of suspected nuclear sites in Syria has only emboldened the superhawks.
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There has never been a shortage of reasons to go to war or a sufficient supply of human reason to avoid unnecessary conflict. This reality is made even more dangerous when you have emboldened but intellectually unarmed superhawks at the controls. Here we go again!
If the government is so idiotic as to think bombing Iran will actually help America, then we need a whole NEW set of leaders in every branch of our government. We are so close to becoming an irrelevant country with our freakish neo-con ways that others think America as obsolete as the dinosaur.
BushCo is determined to demonize Iran for the influx of arms into the hands of Iraqi insurgents
Look people, they've published their game plan, it's downloadable at the PNAC website.
They are demonizing Iran rather than putting the blame where it predominately belongs--in Saudi Arabia. BushCo is a big-bud to SA, so you won't hear that complaint. But the PNAC goals are to eventually invade Iran & Syria.
THIS IS DOCUMENTED. They are simply sticking to their plan, meanwhile blowing smoke up everybody's ass who will accept it.
There is no mystery here.
BushCo is determined to demonize Iran for the influx of arms into the hands of Iraqi insurgents
Look people, they've published their game plan, it's downloadable at the PNAC website.
They are demonizing Iran rather than putting the blame where it predominately belongs--in Saudi Arabia. BushCo is a big-bud to SA, so you won't hear that complaint. But the PNAC goals are to eventually invade Iran & Syria.
THIS IS DOCUMENTED. They are simply sticking to their plan, meanwhile blowing smoke up everybody's ass who will accept it.
There is no mystery here.
Are you willing to park your car? Do ANYthing else to save on fuel use? Because, if not, you
can divest all you want, and it won't do any
good. The Iraq war was about oil, so, the more
we use, the more they sell, the more they drill,
the more they want to go invade Iran. Oil.
Why do we have to "confront Iran" at all! Just exactly what have they done? They claim that they are just building reactors for power and to date there has been NO EVIDENCE to the contrary. In fact even our own US Intelligence Agencies official stance is that they are AT LEAST 5 years away from being able to make a single war head, asuming that they decide they want to, which again no evidence. So then I guess we need to confront them for their "medling" in Iraq? Sorry, again no evidence. In fact virtually all the evidence says that the various factions fighting the US and each other are home grown and to the extent that they are from other countries the majority are from Saudi Arabia. I like the idea of using means other than war to oppose policies that we don't like but in this case it just feeds into the lies that are being fed to the US public that there is a problem where in reality none exists.
Can't agree with you more JGatsby - well put. This country's leadership has lost it's collective minds.
Even Hillary is on this stupid bandwagon. (And no, I cannot and will not vote for her because of this 'all options on the table' stance with Iran.)
I don't think our beltway elites can even perceive reality any more.
We've been giving peace a chance since the end of the VietNam war. Even Ronald Reagan was cowed, and backed off after the Lebanon bombing in 1983. In the 1990's the military was cut back to dangerously weak levels, and intelligence agencies were gutted. The building threat of terrorist attack was either ignored, or foolishly pursued as a violation of US criminal law, not the acts of war that they were.
Add all that up - and much, much more - and you have 9/11. And you have the Democrat Party push for failure in the war on terror. And you have dupes like Jonathan Alter defending and promoting the idiocy.
Americans are sheltered, spoiled, soft and, no matter how much brainpower certain people have, they think and act stupidly.
The wolves need to be at the door for people to get it - that means enemies in your personal space, directly attacking you and your families with impunity.
The US has been strong enough to prevent that.
The US has been weak enough to create the non-thinkers on the Left.
OK jeersforfears, I'm taking your bait. First of all, the 9/11 terrorists weren't Iranian. They weren't even Iraqi. They were Saudis and Egyptians acting independently of their governments. I still don't see how a multi-national organization like Al-Qaeda can perpetuate an act of war. Nations fight wars, not international terrorist groups. Confronting Al-Qaeda in any other manner than that of mass murderers gives them a legitimacy they should not have. Can't on one hand say they've committed an act of war and then on the other say that the rules of war like the Geneva conventions don't apply. Perhaps it's my spoiled softness, I don't know.
Many would like to equate ending the US occupation in Iraq with capitulating in the "war on terror", but there is no connection. Al-Qaeda didn't exist in Iraq prior to our invasion. Secondly, it wasn't the Dems who ignored the "building threat of terrorist attacks", but rather the Bush administration. Tenet and Richard Clarke tried to get Condi to do something but were rebuffed.
If the Mutually Assured Destruction deterrent is working with the Soviet Union and China, why wouldn't it work with Iran should they actually develop a bomb? We have thousands of nukes, some that can even take out their bunkers buried deep below ground.
It's amazing to me that in all of our much vaunted military power that the murders on 9/11 could have been ultimately prevented by a simple deadbolt on the cockpit doors.
You are just mourning the troubles, people of your thinking have created first.
For example: Al Queda and Bin Laden were a CIA-breed, which started going after their masters, once they were dropped as not being usefull anymore, after the Soviets were thrown out of Afghanistan by them.
Had you given them a sincere option for a decent living, once fighting in Afghanistan had ended - 9/11 would never have happened.
The BIG, BIG problem with US-politics is that, you are always getting into something without having prepared a proper way out. But as soon as the mess starts, you try to blame it on someone else.
You are always starting things with a big hullaballoo - but, as soon as things don't work out the way you like it, the USA reacts like a stubborn child, who doesn't like the sand-castle it just built, anymore: Then, you'd be smashing every other sand-castle in the sandbox, too, rather than learning how to properly build a nicer sand-castle from the other kids and continue playing with them.
The problem is: The World is getting tired of the USA smashing their sand-castles. And some kids are even sincerely thinking about slapping your fingers, should you really try that again.
So, if given a choice, do you want to support the candidate that voted for the Lieberman-Kyl ammendment, or the candidate that wants a non-violent approach (a financial impact) toward Iran?
It's time to change the way we behave in this world. An evolved country would use every tool available before entering into a military conflict that would cost thousands of lives. An evolved country would know that you can't take an aggressive posture with Iran and then expect that they will sit down and talk to you.
We need to have the courage to make some serious changes in our government. A vote for Hillary Clinton will not result in the change that we need to see.
THE PRESIDENTS MIND IS MISSING!
WE GET THE GOVERNMENT WE DESERVE… and, boy, we have really been getting it for the last 6 years! Truth, values, competence and results no longer matter in America.
THE PROBLEM: this President is not a rational thinker. His mind accepts information from only two sources: faith and experience. Because Bush is not rational (strictly empirical and subjective), objective facts and evidence such as the recent National Intelligence Estimates (NIEs) that found the Iraq war has created more jihadists and terrorists and made America less safe are meaningless to this anachronistic man of several millennia ago. The reality of Iraq is what he thinks it is from the beautiful White House, and so our country and our precious soldiers are in for much more of this endless strategic disaster.
GOOD NEWS though... God is speaking directly to George Bush (again) and telling him to go to war with Iran. This new war should go as well as the Iraq war (his last guidance from a higher authority, another Father than Bush41) and further help over one billion Muslims in their decision to fight America in a mutual holy war. The Crusades of long ago are living history in the Middle East, and Muslims are already primed for another war with Christian invaders. Our bring-it-on cowboy President is only rekindling and fueling this centuries-old fire.
Of course, TALKING WITH ADVERSARIES (instead of war) requires rational thought; thus with Bush, American diplomacy is an oxymoron. It will never happen! If past is prelude, Bush diplomacy with Iran will be perfunctory and rigged; our mentally unbalanced, messianic President needs to provoke a war, AND HE WILL FIND A WAY!
WITHOUT RATIONAL THINKING, bumping into reality is always a shock! FUTURE SHOCK: roiled Pakistan is just one assassin bullet away from going under. When the President finally increases the level of hatred against the United States to where it engulfs Pakistan, then we face nuclear terror, and Biblical Armageddon becomes real and a self-fulfilling prophecy. Oh, the joy, the Rapture!
It's disheartening to read the musings of a totally sheltered, naive person who repeats verbatim the Left Wing's talking points.
The defenders of the US are defending your right to be silly. You should give them a shout out.
What's silly is for Cheney-Bush to be "kicking ass" in Iraq and playing the Lone Superpower in a world wide game of "King of the Hill". The trouble with that game is that the King always gets toppled, sooner or later, and then it gets ugly.
Hi, just to remind you: Right-wing
YOUR TRICKS DON'T WORK ANYMORE, MATE! WHEN WILL YOU EVER GET THIS RIGHT? YOUR TRICKS ARE THE DESEASE, NOT THE CURE!
It's time for a complete change in politics. Complete, outright change. Whatever the cost of it: It will still be cheaper by magnitudes - speaking in terms of money, of lives and, of grief - than keep going on like before.
If South Africa's aparthied regime was a revolutionary government bent on regional and world domination disinvestment would have got nowhere with them.
At the start of their evil revolution the toxic mullahs made their choice: ALL OR NOTHING. And nothing it will be.
Well - just go ahead. Make yourself obsolete.
Don't you realize that, political stubbornness like that is driving the USA into obsolescence in the Middle East?
For every Dollar not spent in Iran, there's a Yuan and a Rubel combined in the pipeline. Every Dollar you "divest", only strengthens the grip of China and Russia in Iran and, therefore, in the whole of Central Asia.
"Divesting Iran" is the third-stupidest thing I have heard lately about actual US-politics - right after 1. Invading Iraq and 2. threatening bombing of Iran.
Make you own ranking list.
The day we bomb Iran, is going to be a sad day for all of America. The fact is Iran doesn't have the bomb, the U.S. has about 10,000 Nuclear Weapons, not to mention the chemical weapons and biological weapons. If some invaded us for WMD, they would not have a problem finding them.
It has been reported that Israel is sitting on about 300 Nuclear Weapons, as far as Biological and Chemical weapons, I am sure they have them also. In Lebannon last summer, Israel was using White Phospherus weapons and Cluster bombs.
If we attack Iran, China, Russia, and Venezuala, are going to be extremely pissed off. China could pull the plug on us right now and bankrupt our Country. So as far as the U.S. using our Wealth, well Bush has taken all of that and given it to the private contractors, there is none.
The American people have been lied to so much, we walk around and don't realize what a dangerous mess we are really in. When we fall do you think all these Countries that we have bullied all of these years are going to come and help us????? Think again.
Reid, Pelosi, Freedom watch and the AIPAC will not let us get out of Iraq and they are now pushing to invade Iran and Syria....
Whats to bomb there? The mullahs are desperately trying to revert Iran to Middle Ages on their won, why stop them?!
Iran will eventually fall of its own weight. The ruling mullahs love soft living just like Soviet style elite "nomenclat
We should leave them alone, restrict trade with Iran as much as possible, destroy their proxy groups in the Middle East, limit as much as possible transfer of money and weapons in and out of Iran( naval blockade will be required) and let me stew in their own juices if it takes decades.
Forget Anit-Muslim propaganda: hit them where it hurts: flood Iran with Simpsons, South Park, iPods, Metallica, Ice Cube, Pink Floyd and cheap pot and watch this fake Islamic edifice collapse. These are the smart bombs Bush should be thinking about.
No religious freaks can stand ridicule. This is whats destroys regimes from within much more efffectively than external military threat.
The RELIGIOUS FREAK in the White House has been ridiculed repeatedly and yet, he is still there....!
Where is GOD when you really, really need him to sop this lunatic????
bomb iran why not there will be some big profits in that war on terror.
if we dont fight them there we will have to fight them over here.
ben laden's 9/11 accomplished more than he ever thought possible.
he unleashed the warmongers in this country and gave them an excuse to do their war for profits and imperialism while americans slept.
wonder who the real evil of axis is?
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