Alter: Before We Bomb Iran … | Newsweek Voices - Jonathan Alter

Posted By: dahszil @ 10/31/2007 11:46:35 PM

Comment: After we overthrew the great democratically elected statesmen Mossadegh in circa 1953, we installed the Shah back on the throne with ultimate power in Iran.
Even though the cia has admitted to covertly making that regime change for access and control of Persian oil, the shah was feverishly developing plans for nuclear power. Oil is prohibitively expensive to make electricity from. Perhaps the Shah and now Ahmadinad's regime know something that the rest of us don't know-that Iranian petroleum "fields" are drying up quicker than any of us in the west want to acknowlege. An Iranian "bomb" has little to do with the upcoming Bush/ Cheney regime's bloody "liberation" of Iran.

Posted By: masherif @ 10/29/2007 6:00:26 PM

Comment: How could we be credible?
Sorry for my English. I come from the old Europe, as Mr. Rumsfeld said!
Following on NBC, Oct. 28, 2007 (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21516968/). ???ElBaradei says he has no evidence Tehran is developing nuclear weapons. ... and expressed concern that escalating rhetoric from the U.S. could bring disaster. .. But have we seen Iran having the nuclear material that can readily be used into a weapon? No. Have we seen an active weaponization program? No. ... ElBaradei said he was worried about the growing rhetoric from the U.S., which he noted focused on Iran's alleged intentions to build a nuclear weapon rather than evidence the country was actively doing so. If there is actual evidence, ElBaradei said he would welcome seeing it. ... ???
Can we still remember a congruent story like this? Covering same logic before the Iraq war? Have we forgotten it? Why politicians in power can spread the same lie for many times, and why we believe them again and again? Do we really want peace? Why then are we following them? If we are so confident that this is not true? Is something wrong with us? And our politicians know well, that with us something is wrong? That we need tension, need the war and the killing rituals? So they can manipulate us, at any time they need? Yes, nuclear weapons, and indeed all weapons are dangerous and show how violent we are and how many of us prefer violence as a way to dominate others! Even the American policy has fallen in love with this ritual of war several times. To dominate others or to bring them democracy? Interesting is that the same politicians and states in which are hoarding these weapons suddenly realize their dangers. Is something wrong here? While USA, Russia, France, Pakistan, India, Israel, and others developing and deploying actual nuclear weapons!!! Still nothing wrong here? If nuclear weapons are so dangerous for Mr. Bush, why he and the other nuclear powers don not give example and begin to destroy them? Why they are not willing to concentrate efforts to create a serious way for all countries to follow it? Do you think they want this? The reality says no, they do not want this! Why? What these weapons for a purpose have? Is it the deterrence? But what does this exactly mean, deterrence? Does this also mean extortion of all those who do not have these weapons? The law of the strongest? The barbarity, the modern barbarism? Yes, I would like to see that in Iran a democracy can prevail, in Iraq too. In Syria, but also in friendly countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the world! Yes, the regime in Iran has not deserved support. But which country has become its freedom as a gift (even USA itself)? Exactly so little by a dictation from the outside, through the USA or any other power! This is just a different type of domination, a hidden, under the pretext of democracy!

Posted By: kevin estis @ 10/27/2007 11:53:20 AM

Comment: Divestment is the best bomb we can drop. Especially don't buy their oil, or, for that matter, any oil. Its way past time to remove it from our enrgy equation. No oil equals much less pollution, equals energy self reliance and no more oil wars.

Posted By: homa @ 10/24/2007 5:15:50 AM

Comment: On Feb10,1987 Iraq's Military Jets were bombing the city Tehran (capital of Iran), one of the bombs was dropped a few KM away from our house my sister jumped on my mothers lap and my mom had to rush her self to the hospital while the city was being bombarded to give birth to me. My family moved to Vancouver Canada in year 2000, in september 2002 i walked the streets of downtown vancouver with tousands of others protesting the war, against the U.S attacking Iraq with a sign in my and " NO WAR ON CHILDREN" . I am not into political debates but all i can say is that i feel sorry for the way the American public is being fed hatered and narrow mindedness toward the rest of the world and i KNOW for a fact that for every person who lost their life in 9/11 there was an innocent Iraqi child , women , and men who have lost their lives so far and are still losing their lives. These numbers of deaths aren't on the news in the U.S. My generation has a HUGE and HEAvy weight to pull in hopes to make this little planet of ours peaceful and as long as the consumer corporate world progresses more and more towards capitalism soon half the children wround the world will be born in war............ It is so scary to read these articles online these days , all i can think of is my grandma back home and all the rest of my family. How is a jet plain loaded with bombs any different from a suicide bomber ? How is bombing more people is going to REDUCE terrorism ????? exactly ..............it doesn't. So therefore Politcs = money, oil, power, wealth, ect.ect. and apparently how the united states likes to all those is by TAKING IT by force . When Iraq was bombing Iran in 1987 BOTH Iran AND Iraq were getting their war crafts and supplies from the U.S. Now we are in 2007, Saddam Husein is dead and it seems like there is a bigger #of IRAqi poeple and american soilders being killed compared to the time when Saddam was in power. SOMETHING IS OBVIOSLY WRONG . To all you great Americans that happen to be reading this comment please just try to get your information from elsewear than you OWN media ( look outside the box) before you gather around the university of Columbia with signs of Ahmadinejad the president of iran with hitlers logo . Try going to the streets with a message of peace not hate before you misslead even more people .

Posted By: skd500 @ 10/19/2007 7:19:26 PM

Comment: I would like to hear more about the comments from the Iran President and his trip to Columbia University on this site. I would like to have incontrovertible proof that he and his country have been a victim of terrorism like he says......I also want to know his viewpoint on Israel which he failed to elaborate on......he said that there are two sides to every story, but he never told his side, he only answered the question posed by the student. Before we start making all these rash decisions, I would like to know more about the philosophy of the Iranian President and the Iatola(sp?) Khomeini, and their positions and belief systems. Then and only then will I come to a conclusion on whether this country is truly a threat to us, as is being portrayed, or if we are being led in to believing yet another attack on a country based on wrong information, as was done in Iraq......I want to be 100% sure we are not somehow a catalyst by our own wrongdoing when we are attacked as we were by 9/11/07. I still think there is more to be learned about the 9/11/07 attacks that we are not being told by our leaders.......I want to be sure we are not being brainwashed into believing the side who definitely has the wrong intent from the beginning. What did we do that pre-empted the reason behind the attack, and are we getting the full story as American citizens by our own government.....I am extremely concerned with our nation's integrity and the integrity of those leading it at this point, there is a serious breakdown in communication somewhere, shouldn't we all be???........ thank you for my opinion.....Stephanie skd500

Posted By: who says we are free? @ 10/18/2007 9:51:07 PM

Comment: badtimes is right! it is amazing that people are actually cooly discussing the option to engage in WWIII...better make peace with your Maker...

Posted By: Badtimes @ 10/17/2007 7:26:44 PM

Comment: The bible mentions Russia and Iran prominently in the end times. The USA is no where to be found. Need I say more?

Posted By: Gwillym @ 10/17/2007 5:06:01 PM

Comment: Everybody calm down, we're not going to bomb Iran. This is a distraction from far more pressing issues. Medical insurance, our debt, homeland security, congress working together.

Posted By: Bloody yankee @ 10/17/2007 12:44:16 PM

Comment: GOD BLESS ISRAEL! terrorist are always bombing them. think they had enough.

Posted By: Bloody yankee @ 10/17/2007 12:42:44 PM

Comment: Enter Your Comment

Posted By: donnasaggia @ 10/17/2007 10:32:47 AM

Comment: The whole premise of divestment from Iran is faulty. Why should we divest from Iran? What is Iran doing that is illegal? Iran is building nuclear energy--and there is absolutely no proof to the contrary. There is a mass hysteria in this country fueled by an anti-Muslim neocon agenda. There are other countries that are actually committing war crimes that we should be sanctioning and divesting from--among the most delinquent is Israel. And it's no coincidence that Israel is leading the charge against Iran. Were Israel to abide by the UN resolutions that it violates, and end its military occupation, it might have some moral authority to demand that Iran follow UN resolutions.

Posted By: donnasaggia @ 10/17/2007 10:31:35 AM

Comment: The whole premise of divestment from Iran is faulty. Why should we divest from Iran? What is Iran doing that is illegal? Iran is building nuclear energy--and there is absolutely no proof to the contrary. There is a mass hysteria in this country fueled by an anti-Muslim neocon agenda. There are other countries that are actually committing war crimes that we should be sanctioning and divesting from--among the most delinquent is Israel. And it's no coincidence that Israel is leading the charge against Iran. Were Israel to abide by the UN resolutions that it violates, and end its military occupation, it might have some moral authority to demand that Iran follow UN resolutions.

Posted By: dogman @ 10/17/2007 9:29:15 AM

Comment: We just can't bomb Iran like we did Libya. This is a nation that sent its young men to clear landmines by walking over them. If we bomb Iran, it will be war. A war we need a draft for ,a war tax, not to mention, sacrifice at home due to gas prices. The question we need to ask ourselves, is this a war we want to send our children into? My answer is only as a last resort. First, don't let senators anonymously pigeonhole a bill.

Posted By: Bloody yankee @ 10/16/2007 8:00:20 PM

Comment: I wish we could go back in time and change events of mistakes today what they thought was a good idea then. For example telling russian leader to tear down that wall. like to tell ronald reagan a thing or two for even suggesting the idear. Todays putin leader in russia threaten sthe U.S over irans nuke program. would like to say to that Russin IDIOT, U.S won't be the ones to take care of Irans nuke farm. but we do have problem with iran supplying our enemies in iraq with bombs etc; Putin Ya sadistic *** put that iron curtin back up. Didn't the U.S.a loan your commie country millions of dollars but was pardoned? am i wrong There pay your debt. etc; etc; from an american who could care less. BUILD THE WALL PUTIN BUILD THE WALL

Posted By: Mickeyo @ 10/16/2007 1:31:56 PM

Comment: Before we bomb Iran, we must bomb commie Russia first. Commie Russia is enemy # 1.

Russians must not be trusted. Bush said he could see Putin's soul. Look what happened! Rice and Gate were humiliated in Russia. Putin made Rice and Gate wait for nearly an hour, and they left Russia with tails between their legs.

Now Putin even warns the U.S. not to mess around with his friends in Iran. How can the Bush chicken-hawks take this insult lying down? How can Bush swallow this humiliation? Bomb Commie Russia!!!

Posted By: Mickeyo @ 10/16/2007 1:26:09 PM

Comment: Before we bomb Iran, we must bomb commie Russia first. Commie Russia is enemy # 1.

Russia never was our friend, and never will be. Putin humiliated Rice and Gate and made them wait for nearly an hour to see him. Rice and Gate left commie Russia with tails between their legs.

Get this: Now Putin warns the U.S. not to mess around with his friends in Iran. Wait a minute, I thought Bush tells the American people that he can see Putin's soul. WTF was Bush thinking (or not thinking)???

Posted By: spartan1961 @ 10/16/2007 12:23:46 PM

Comment: When is Newsweek going to have the nerve to do a cover story on what is really goinng on:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Israel_Lobby_and_U.S._Foreign_Policy

We the American public need a full and open discourse about the kind of policies we should be pursuing in the Middle East, and who the special interests are that push us into actions that defy American best interestes.

Posted By: tarquinis @ 10/16/2007 11:49:45 AM

Comment: Mr. Alter may choose to read the press today 10-16-07 where Putin and Ahmadinejad and all the other Caspian nations strongly opposed actions against Iran while it is in compliance with the NPT, which of course legally authorizes them civilian development and use of nuclear technology for power generation purposes. Mr. Putin explicitly states that he is aware of no information that Iran is violating their obligations under that treaty, while Pakistan and India, non-signatories are busy developing and deploying actual nuclear weapons. Does Mr. Alter suggest we divest from Pakistan and India? Even such measures as attempting to bankrupt Iran can not succeed, as petroleum prices go towards $100 per barrel. If Iran complies with the IAEA and in compliance with the NPT, we have no right at all to conduct soft warfare measures against them, because they oppose zionist Israel.

Posted By: edithtello @ 10/14/2007 8:50:35 PM

Comment: Americans that don't have an opinion on the War on Terror must look a world map, specifically the mideast region. Then the proverbial light bulb will go off...this situation is created by our need for oil and only oil. Have we all forgotten that the US was "friends" with Iran not so long ago. We do not want to be "friends" any more in part because it has become easier to just take what we want.