Opening A Door In Tehran?

Why is News Week streeing th IQ of Bus and Palin, and not that of those who elect Democrots.. When the averaage IQ of those who vote vor then is less tha 45. NATIONAL PUBLICATION, THAT IS NOT FROM MY OIINION.

The bushes courtship of the Ruinicrats such as the lady drowner is one reaso the republicans are out of th running and wii=ll be until some one strong enough to tel the Kennedys and te suckercrats to take a long sloy at the slime pit they created.

I think a U.S. office in Tehran is a great idea. Send Obama over therir to run it.

I HOPE THE ADMINISTRSTION WILL LAY A GOOD FOUUUNDATION TO SEE THAT THE OFFICE OPENS.IT WILL HELP REDUCE THE TENSION AND ANIMOSITY BETWEEN TEHRAN AND WAHINTON

As Americans, we love our short term memory. It keeps us in total bliss. In the fifties we gave the green light for the CIA, through our embassy, to overthrow a democratically elected government so Great Britain could control and buy cheap oil. We put the Shah in power, not once but twice. Yes, the land the embassy sits on is considered US soil, but the rest of the country belongs to the nation which allows us to be there. So when we continue to inject our political wants and needs on a sovereign nation, making their lives miserable so we can ???live the good life???, they have every right to invade us.

As the say goes, the only reason our government has never been overthrown, is because there is no American Embassy in Washington D.C...

We not only need presences in Tehran, we need an embassy and direct talks with the Iranians. We can not pick and choose who we talk to; after all we created the mess in the first place. I have to assume we will not talk to this government, because they would want to talk about how we got where we are first, before we move forward. That would mean an admission of guilt, and we don???t do that.

its a good idea to engage Iran. and why not? they don't threaten the U.S.A. And the reason they get involved in Iraq is to keep the U.S. bogged down there as long as possible because of the way our government continues to threaten them militarily. Didn't the U.S. help Iraq against them to force a stalemate? What Iran does now as far as Iraq is no different.

Too little, too late. Imagine this happening and radical Iranians taking over the Swiss embassy to get to the Americans. Bush would be handing Obama a brand new crisis as the one that Jimmy Carter had. Why now?

As a school teacher I often have to deal with bullies. When there are problems I talk with both the victim AND the bully. In more than 15 years in the classroom I have found that you can just listen to one side and not the other. I have also found that ignoring or isolating the bully does not help. He or she wants attention and will do what it takes to get it. It doesn't matter if it is positive or negative attention. if we do.

My recommendation is that we do what we can to have diplomatic relations with every country. We are more likely to head off problems

Have hope, John.

The United States just got rid of our Theocratic Dictatorship. With time, maybe Iran can do the same.

Open talks with Iran? Sure. Negotiate trade? Why not? Open an embassy in Tehran? There's an old saying, "Fool me once, shame on you." "Fool me twice, shame on me." There were just major street demonstrations, state sponsored I'm sure, commemorating the 1979 violation of our embassy and staff. An act of aggression no different than the attack on Pearl Harbor. They came into the compound, which by law is American land, and invaded and kidnapped our citizens. It is not the Iranian people I bare ill-will toward but their Theocratic Dictatorship. The same government that condoned the '79 attack. Whether it's Khomeini past or Khemeini present (pardon the poor spelling) it's still bull!

Open talks with Iran? Sure. Negotiate trade? Why not? Put an embassy in Tehran? There's an old saying "Fool me once, shame on you." "Fool me twice, shame on me." Just a few days ago there were street demonstrations commemorating the 1979 violation of our embassy and kidnapping of American citizens. These "demonstrations", most like government sponsored, tell the story of Iran's continued belligerance for the United States which I will admit is returned "in kind". I actually trust the Iranian people, it's their theocratic dictatorship that can take a hike.

Open talks with Iran? Sure. Negotiate trade? Why not? Put an embassy in Tehran? There's an old saying "Fool me once, shame on you." "Fool me twice, shame on me." Just a few days ago there were street demonstrations commemorating the 1979 violation of our embassy and kidnapping of American citizens. These "demonstrations", most like government sponsored, tell the story of Iran's continued belligerance for the United States which I will admit is returned "in kind". I actually trust the Iranian people, it's their theocratic dictatorship that can take a hike.

Westcoast,

Livni is a "she", not a "he".

It is better that we talk to the Iranians than not, even, if in the end, it is to give them an ultimatum . Everyone was just as convinced that Saddam had WMD, although part of this was based on his previous use of chemical weapons on the Shias and Kurds, and because Saddam had sent the IAEA packing. The lip service paid to "talking" to Saddam in the run up to our invasion is a stain on this country's legacy and the reason we were unable to bring together a real coalition.

I strongly suspect that the Iranian theocracy would like to have its own nuclear stock pile in order to cement their position as THE regional power, but has anyone considered the ramifications of their actually using a nuclear bomb or missle? If MAD worked in our arms race with the Soviet Union then why would anyone think it wouldn't work with Iran - especially if the destruction would be more than a little one sided? Also, what would happen if Iran attacked Isreal with a nuclear weapon? Yes, they could kill a lot of people, but if they are so bent on the Palestinians getting back "their" land - would a radioactive pit qualify?

Although it worries me that any country has nuclear weapons, who made us the final arbiter of who gets to join the club? Pakistan is potentially much more worrisome than Iran. We need to try everything we can diplomatically to diffuse the situation. Also, Isreal probably has better human intelligence in / on Iran than what we have and also has the most to fear - at least in the short term. If the Isrealis come to the conclusion that Iran poses an imminent threat, I don't think they'll be asking our permission to do whatever they deem necessary.

As far as cost goes, it may be one of the best investments we could make to have a small office in Tehran. How would a few hundred thousand dollars a year compare to the 10 billion a month we are currently spending in Iraq? If an escalation of tensions (or even war) can be averted because of easy access to face to face communication can anyone put a price on this?

GOOD FOR YOU MIKEHONCHO.........well said.

I hope Iran and America become great allies. I'm tired of israeli control of american foreign policy. Israel has killed more americans then iran has and don't give me that bs about Iran funding terrorist in Iraq there is no evidence and everytime Petreus said that he never gives evidence, USS Liberty 34 sailors were murdered by israel and almost 5000 dead in Iraq war and every one knows that war was for israel and not oil because why is Iraq signing oil deals with Russia and China just couple months ago. Also why don't we go to war with Venezuala they have as much oil as Iraq and anti american policy why because Venezuala is not next to Israel. Thats why they are pushing for war against Iran because the Iraq war went terrible and made Iran more powerful and with Iran gaining nuclear knowledge that can challenge Israel hegemony in the region and with nuclear Iran, israel can't invade any country no more because somebody can challenge Israel empire. US doesn't care if Iran is nuclear they gave Iran a nuclear reactor in the 70's. If was about oil also why would US put sanctions on Iran on oil. US oil companies can't do oil deals with Iran because the sanctions and we know US will do business with anybody heck we get oil from Hugo Chavez.

Building allies or setting up diplomacy should be a no brainer to american diplomats and should be consider in relation to how it can strengthen our relations with others and our economy , as well as ,
setting accountability. Rather than setting up deadlines for war !!!!!!!!!!! Where are the democrats. what's up
with the no comment

So what will this Tehran move cost the American citizens?

At long last, some good sense coming from 'Bush administration officials'.

It is a pity that when the most worldwise among us were screaming at the top of our lungs in late 2001 that, even if a surgically-precise strike against well-targeted Al Qaeda sites in Afghanistan would be an appropriate response ot 9/11, the invasion of Afghanistan would prove very problematic and, later, we went nuts when they planned an invasion of Iraq, we were copiously insulted as traitors, terrorists, etc., when, in fact, our motivations were in favour of American interests and the interests of humanity, including, of course, Afghans and Iraqis.

Similarly, in 1979, I personally warned that any outside interference, either by Arabs or by CIA covert operators acting in concert with counter-revolutionary forces in Iran, would only worsen deeply-felt resentment againsy America, whereas non-intervention would allow the wounds to heal quickly.

Unfortunately, then also, we were attacked as traitors and religious obscurantists.

It is as a result of this madness that world events have taken the course that they have since 1979, a course that a Guardian reporter has described in his book.of that title as Mumbo-Jumbo.