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Iran Not Nearly as Crazy as Neocons Claim

Its leaders aren't stupid—and deterrence can work: Greenway

By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff

Posted Oct 6, 2009 9:00 AM CDT

(Newser) – Iran has no nuclear bomb, but already the old Bush-Cheney chorus has returned to insist it's time for another war in the Middle East. It's true that sanctions may not stop Iran from ramping up its nuclear program, but that doesn't mean that deterrence and diplomacy can't help, writes Boston Globe columnist HDS Greenway. Not unlike the Soviet Union, "Iran is a very calculating and rational society," and it knows full well what the US and Israel are capable of.

Neocons seem to believe that Iran is ruled by a death cult that "wouldn’t hesitate to commit national suicide if it could get at Israel’s throat," even though Israel has had the power to annihilate Iran for decades. In fact, Iran's nuclear program is coldly pragmatic—with Iraq and Afghanistan on its borders, the country is surrounded by US troops. With the right carrots and sticks, "there is still a chance that the West can persuade Iran that it is in its interest to stop shy of completing a weapon."

A satellite image showing a suspected nuclear enrichment facility under construction inside a mountain located about 20 miles north northeast of Qom, Iran.
A satellite image showing a suspected nuclear enrichment facility under construction inside a mountain located about 20 miles north northeast of Qom, Iran.   (AP Photo/DigitalGlobe)
The Revolutionary Guard's Zelzal missile is launched in a drill near the city of Qom, 80 miles south of Tehran, Iran.
The Revolutionary Guard's Zelzal missile is launched in a drill near the city of Qom, 80 miles south of Tehran, Iran.   (AP Photo / Mehr News Agency, Raouf Mohseni)
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Why do we think Iran would give a bomb to terrorists if it had one? Why would Iran give Hezbollah an atomic bomb any more than we would have similarly armed the Contras in Nicaragua?
- HDS Greenway

Only by engaging with Iran as a country, not just as a nuclear proliferation problem; by recognizing and addressing Iran’s concerns; and identifying where we can agree, as in Afghanistan, is there hope for success. And that won’t be easy. -

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 14 comments
LoudProudLib
Oct 7, 2009 12:03 PM CDT
I like hot cheetos..yum yum...with a Corona lite
LoudProudLib
Oct 7, 2009 12:00 PM CDT
Amen my friend, Amen! As Pogo once said "we have met the enemy and he is us!"
riffran
Oct 7, 2009 5:08 AM CDT
funny how Iran is suddenly a nice place to the left...when it's a story about *gasp* the evil Neo-cons being paranoid...*singing* These rose colored glasses...(thank for reminding me of that song citrix)

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