Wow, an article on Iran that only mentions Israel three times!
I think there should be more than that since the only reason we are involved there at all is because of our little ally that could.

Iran is no threat to America, just as Iraq was not.

Yeap...it's election time. Nothing better than a chimera to take attention away with important domestic issues, like deficit, import-export deficit, falling of dollar, unemployment, jobs leaving US, health care, and all unscrupulous people in the political money business such as Abrahamoffs and the like.

You fools!!! Do some research on the 12th imam and then tell me iran is no threat. If they are so innocent why will they not let the atomic inspectors in to make sure of this. America, wake up the world as we once knew it is quickly coming to an end. We are taught tolerance in this country are they taught that in iran? If you want to become moslem than stay idle, Ahmadinejad has a goal in mind and has stated so more than once. DO SOME RESEARCH !!!!!

Why can't we establish exactly what the case is?

"West claims enrichment is for weapons program, Iran claims enrichment is for peacefull energy program"

Someone is lying. Couldn't UN inspections,
and satellite observation determine the truth?

I think this is just another batch of warmongering, witch will once again be quite helpfull to Haliburton.
I don't think we can afford any more of Bush's "peace making" - witch is merely double speak for instigation and invasion.

Not very productive to start a post with you fools, lets people know not to read it.

Then stay asleep, The reason we can't see what is going on is because they have it all buried 75 ft underground. Please just google Ahmadinejad and the 12th imam. He is as crazy as they come. By the way you read my post. If the shoe fits...

Obviously, Iran needs to be stopped from aquiring nuclear capabilities; the situation is not the same as that in Iraq. Noone needs nuclear power purely for energy purposes. In north America less than 5% of all our power is generated through nuclear power! The problem here is that Bush is an idiot and the US government does not seem to understand how diplomacy works. The world requires the UN or some multi-lateral force led by someone other than the US to stop Tehran.

america acts like a chicken jumping over bomb knowing that it will explode and let our children die in another country,i wouldnt be surprise if satan bush is planning for another war. thats what the bush family are beening doing fighting with their family personal enemies. MONEY TALKS.. thats y bush talks.

The U.S. is not leading, we are a part of the UN and they all agree nuclear processes need to be stopped in Iran. Tehran is just buying time, even the people of Iran believe this. The people there need to overthrow this regime and be done with Ahmadinejad. Nearly all of that regime has come into power through corruption.

I have to admit, the thought of a crazed madman with a shady past, an inflated sense of his own power, an iron-clad grip on his rubber-stamp government, in charge of a huge amount of military power and nuclear weapons, and possessed of the belief that he is somehow fulfilling scritpural prophecy through his actions scares the hell out of me.

Ahmadinejad is pretty scary, too.

IRAN NEEDS NUKE ENERGY,WHY SHOULD IT BE RELIANT ON OIL?IRAN IS DIVERSIFYING THE ECONOMY AND SHOULD ALSO THE DIVERSIFY ITS ENERGY SOURCES.STUPID PEOPLE SAY IRAN DOES NOT NEED NUKE ENERGY BECAUSE IT HAS OIL AND GAS.THOSE WILL BE USED FOR EXPORT,WHILE NUKE ENERGY WILL BE USED DOMESTICALLY.YOU OR AMERICA DOES NOT OPEN THEIR MOUTH AND SAY WHAT IRAN NEEDS AND DOES NOT NEED.U.S WANTS IRAN TO BE POOR AND BACKWARD FOREVER-AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN UNCLE SAM!IRAN SIGNED THE NPT AND ALLOWS INSPECTERS,AND IT WAS ONLY THAT ONE TIME THEY DID NOT ALLOW THEM,BUT IRAN ALLOWS THEM IN.IRAN HAS A RIGHT TO NUCLEAR ENERGY,ISRAEL,INDIA,PAKISTAN NEVER SIGNED AND WHY NO ONE COMPLAINS?HUH!

Nothing since 9/11, of any news worthy import, doesn't scream out the only solution to lasting world peace boils down to just 2 words. DISARM ISLAM.

26 wars with murdering of civilians are taking place in the world right now. The USA is directly involved trying to protect innocents in 2 of them. Iraq and Afganistan. The other 24 are completely land grabs seeking dominance for practicing isolationism and growth of radical Islam. No area in this world, where muslims are the dominent majority, isn't declaring Jehad on their neighbors.

It should be international law imposing a 10 year sentence on anyone caught selling or supplying arms to any muslim anywhere. Prison terms to be served in some Arab prison. Results of disarming Islam would be no Muslim would die from anything but natural causes.... or at their own hands.

Just keeping AK-47's, IED's and RPGs out of their hands would eliminate how many innocent lives lost to terrorism everyday? Allowing Iranian crazies nukes is a human mistake guaranteeing some disaster that will ultimately terminate huge chunks of the ME practicing muderous Jehad every day now with impunity.

I haven't seen anything anti-Semetic here -- oh, the diatribes agains Ahmadinejad. But he's Persian, not a Semite.

iran is well within its rights and has full rights to go enriching uranuim for legal purposes.iran allows inspectors,it was only this time they did not.and its not like israel,india,or pakistan signed the npt.iran has diversify its energy and use its oil and gas for export and use nuke energy for domestic use.iran should use nukes itself,itis a capable country and there is no need for it to rely on the west,which is what the u.s wants.the u.s wants to keep iran backward forever.iran also needs nukes,bush has threatened to use nukes on iran even though iran has none,iraq and afghanistan are occupied but not n.korea,there are military bases in arab gulf states,turkey,armenia,azerbaijan,and central asian nations.what shoudl iran do?u.s is a clear threat to iran's safety.if israel can have nukes illegally,then so can iran.america does not decide iran's future.i love you iran!

Iran should have nuke energy if thats what they truely want it for, however do some research and you will soon find it has been three years since iran has let inspectors in. I believe there is even a link on this site (Iaea and Iran) that will explain. as for being a backwards country, yes it is and will stay that way until the corruption ends and equality reigns.

Referring to above post "You fools..." I must say that thank god we have been thought tolerance in our country. I wonder how much more reckless, ravaging, and dim-witted our government action would have been, if we had not been though "tolerance". Who are you trying to "fool"?

We actually have nothing to worry about anymore since I've recently heard that our democratic friends will finally be getting our legislative and executive branches of government back in their control again. Finally, we will have peace in the world. Every country including Iran and Syria will finally breathe a sigh of relief and become the deepest friends with the United States. Finally, we can all cast our collective gazes upon that evil empire, Israel and determine how the world can be freed of this incredible threat to world love and peace. Yes, all nations will become loving brothers (and sisters) and the wonderful utopia we are all expecting will finally arrive. Right.

Indisputed truth is, Iran government is led by a lunatic, nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, yeah right....
Still, if they keep going with their stupid attitude, they will get what they had coming, which is a shower of missiles, and yes, then they will be, victims of the muslim world, as they always claim, they are always the victims, the ones who have suffered a millenium of atrocities...wake up! wake up! the imbecility of your leaders does not mean you have to go in flames....

The 12th Imam, the Second Coming, the Messiah. All very similar prophesies based on the same underlying theories. All just as crazy as the next. Notably the Second Coming and Messiah people have their nukes stockpiled already. Iran does not, but there are allegations that it wants them. Evidence? We don't need no stinkin' evidence - Iraq proves that. We just need lies. We just say "Without doubt Iraq has nuclear weapons", and "We know where they are, here and there and everywhere", and, hey, war time!

Fortunately we have Cheney's Halliburton, Bush's oil companies and various military contractors who will profit handsomely off the chaos while everyone else pays high taxes and/or dies.

Welcome to "freedom".

American Diplomacy toward Iran is not based on fact. We all know that Iran is an important country in Middle-East. The rule and importance of it has been ignored since 1979 revolution. After Revolution American tried to weaken Iran as much as possible but never wanted the regime change. After fall of Soviet Union, this policy changed more aggressively, and after September 11th, 2001 has become unclaimed war. Source of American Diplomacy to Iran is only European countries. What this really means? It means American need to listen to another source of information to know what is going on in Iran. Make it short. Stopping Iran from Nuclear Technology would not work by threat and violence. Time is to negotiate and took the pressure off. If this pressure continues, Iran's moving toward Democracy would take longer time.

sir but iran is more free than many of america's puppets-like saudi arabia.saudi arabia does not allow women to drive,have cell phones,vote,or go out in public,and does not allow any nonmuslim in to the country.iran allows women to vote,drive,hold govermental positions,go out alone,not cover their face unlike in saudi arabia,and christains and jews are allowed to worship and serve in parliament.now you want to say iran is the most dagerous regime on earth?iran more moderate and has better human rights than the arab gulf states and is more tolerant.so if iran is the next nazi germany,then why are there 25,000 jews there,one serving in parliament?it is just hypocrisy,iran is always singled out.uzbekistan boils people to death,while iran's dissidents maninly go to jail for few yrs and come out.akbar ganji recently did meeting withhollywood celebrities in beverly hills,and he had spent six years in prison for lambasting the mullah regime.how ever many in the gulf states are killed,and we never hear ANYTHING bout them.what about the poor men who were boiled to death in uzbekistan,why bush never speaks about their democracy?iran is not a puppet,so it is singled out.u.s does not care about democracy.and to the person who said that we need to overthrow the mullahs,no sir you do not have any right to overthrow the mullahs and you don't tell the people of iran when to overthrow khamenei and ahmadinejad.thanks.

Disarm Islam, I've never read more true words. They have been violent since Christ and are the only religon to believe convert or kill since the crusades. The crusades have stopped and tolerance is todays standard among christians, they truely are backwards in their beliefs.

Disarm all monotheisms, then. Christian, Jewish, and Islam. All three have innocent blood on their hands, and talk of disarming one while letting the others arm at their pleasure is inherently unfair, unjust, and potentially racist. The Law has to apply to all, or it is a joke.

I can't believe Americans are that dumb in believing Iran needs nuclear weapons. Only liberals are brain damaged. Send the liberals to arab nations and clean our country.

I love ignorant comments like:

"Iran is no threat to America, just as Iraq was not."

Yet near all global terrorism acts are coming from these societies and have been for generations.

They are a threat to the US and any other country on this globe. As technology increases (Nuclear bombs for example) it will become easier for these "hate" societies to provide large-scale destruction and death.

The current public moans over 3500ish soldiers dying. These are all men & women who choose to be soldiers. The funny thing is that not to long ago there was another war known as Nam that was full of drafted individuals with a death toll much much larger. America made it through those trying times and I expect us to endure these.

In the past, when we did not trust each other, we could grab a stone, club, sword, or gun and try to protect ourselves as we talked about solutions. Today and more so in the future, the "guns" will be too horrible to contemplate. What chance to I have if my neighbor would rather die trying to kill me than have me continue to live? Do I let him get the weapons that will surely do the job? World peace is a dream that will never, can never happen as long as hate and distrust rule our hearts. I have a very bad feeling about the future...

is this the same u.s THAT said that iran was more dangerous than iraq during the reagan years?!what happened on august 2,1990,IRAQ INVADED KUWAIT,IRAN NEVER INVADED ANYONE!SO THERE AMERICA'S PREDICTION TURNED OUT FALSE!U.S SAID IRAQ HAD WMDS AND LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!ARE WE AMERICANS THAT GULLIBLE AND STUPID TO FALL FOR THIS AGAINS?WHEN ARE WE GOING TO ONCE AND FOR ALL STOP THIS NONSENSE AND STOP WAR FROM HAPPENENING AGAIN?AMERICANS ALWAYS FIND OUT WHEN IT IS TOO LATE,HOW COME WE NEVER STOP IT BEFORE IT HAPPENS?ARE WE AMERICANS STUPID?I HOPE NOT.IRAQ HAD USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS,IRAN HAS NOT.SO IF SADDAM WHO HAD A HISTORY OF USING CHEMICAL WEAPONS DID NOT HAVE NUKES,THEN IRAN MIGHT VERY NOT HAVE THEM!PLUS READ THE ARTICLES ON THE INTERNET,ON U.S INTELLIGENCE SAID TO BE MISSING GAPS ON IRAN'S NUKE PROGRAM!THAT MEANS WE O NOT KNOW ENTIRELY WHAT IRAN IS AFTER!AND WE WANT TO ATTACK THEM?WE AMERICAN SHAVE A PROBLEM,AND WE ASK WHY DO THEY HATE US?WAKE UP PEOPLE IT IS THE SAME STORY AS 2003 IRAQ!AMERICANS ARE BETTER THAN THAT!

"Disarm Islam, I've never read more true words. They have been violent since Christ and are the only religon to believe convert or kill since the crusades."

You need to read some history. If you look at the worst wars / campaigns in history - see e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_toll - none of the top ones is driven by Islamicists, but plenty by Christians (WW I, WW II, Napoleonic wars, Russian civil war, Vietnam) (arguably Iraq-Iran war was Muslim but Hussein wss a secularist).

Where do you see this "convert or kill" philosophy? I'm sure some have it - but so do plenty of "human secularists", who desire to kill to export their idea of "freedom" and "democracy" (just another religion). Indeed the mass murder going on in Iraq ATM is a direct result of this "convert or kill" philosophy.

The problem with your theory is that, while it comports with the propaganda spewed by the mainstream Zionist media, it fails to comport with reality.

Where has the majority of violence throughout the history of civilization been? Surrounding islam and any other religion. You do the math.

Everytime when Bush mentions Iran is against civilization, I cannot help but laugh! He needs a crash course in world history. The war in Iraq was a big strategic blunder - US handed over Iran on a golden platter.

I meant Iraq to Iran on a golden platter (post-lunch blues! :D )

nice try Dick Cheney!!

It would be difficult to say that Islam has been violent since Christ -- since Mohommed didn't live until several centuries AFTER Christ. And when the toll of war has been tallied, the worst cases of mass killing are all firmly in the Christian Civilization camp. Islam, as such, hasn't been much of a threat to anyone outside of Islamic borders since 1492, when Spain threw them out. Since then its been status quo -- with little or no expansion, and very little in terms of extra-civilization aggression.

A note to the folks who are blaming the current War on Terror on Iran: the 9/11 hijackers were by and large Saudi, and Sunni, not Iranian and Shi'ite. The London and Madrid bombings were also Sunni extremeists, and the groundwork for al Qaida was laid by US funds as part of the anti-Soviet war in Afghanistan.

to ian, you need to do some research. iran does'nt hate us. The regime does. we are worried because they won't let inspectors in to be sure it is all safe. why hide? because Ahmadinejad and the regime are crazy and want to wipe isreal off the map. They make no bones about it. they would wipe us, including all the libs who support them, off the map as well, if they got one chance.

PLEASE CITE ONE QUOTE FOR ANYTHING YOU POSTED. OPINIONS ARE NOTHING WITHOUT BACKGROUND

EXAMPLE:
ANONYMOUS SPOUTS PARTY LINE
"Ahmadinejad and the regime are crazy and want to wipe isreal off the map. They make no bones about it. they would wipe us, including all the libs who support them, off the map as well, if they got one chance."

THANK YOU

Don't be a foul!!.Why should Iran allowed the atomic inspectors Iraq did so and they are Paying for it. Could Israel also do same?

Thanks Anonymous II

I would like to add one thing:
You REALLY need to cite things if you have just told someone else that they need to do research.

While you were sleeping, Brazil opened a Uranium enrichment facility, no fuss about that ? Why is that? If Iran's main export was stones (precious or construction) will we be having this discussion?

Disarm Islam?, Fine by me, Saudi Arabia just bought 72 euro fighters, They are flag-bearers of Islam, can't get any more muslim than that.Do you know how many fighters Egypt have, How many tanks ? Do you? (look at their flags, it comes with a sword!) You won't disarm them, will you?, You'll arm them to their teeth, why?
They're subservient.
Ignorance takes many shapes! You guys are familiar with all of them.
In 1953 a CIA-backed coup overthrew the democractically elected government of Iran.
Shah was re-installed and all the progressive forces were smashed. What was left were Islamists, Now they are the most moderate voices in Iran.
Smash them and you have to face with Taleban style guys. US is unique in opposing Iran's development, Europeans have been arm-twisted, The Non-aligned movement which include most of the countries in the world supported Iran's pursuit of Nuclear technology. Do YOUR RESEARCH on NPT, rather than the 12 emam !
NPT was signed based on the compromise that countries have "inalienable" right to nuclear technology. Without that clause, NPT would have never existed.
US/EU are ineffect nullifying that clause, and causing NPT to unravel.
You'll be less secure then! think about that !

I'm not finding this conversation very interesting or satisfying. There are plenty of good comments but the vast generalizations about the nature of Islam and Muslims competing with unreadable SCREEDS doesn't seem to inform anyone about anything. Nor do the messages castigating "fools," "anti-Semites, and people who need to "wake up."

It's putting me to sleep.

I'm interested in whether regular World Opinion readers are bothered by the tone of the discussion. Do you care? Should I shut down the comment board when the discussion goes south? Edit the comments more ruthlessly?

Any and all thoughts welcome.

You can email me too if you want to communicate privately: jeff.morley@wpni.com

What about the ottoman empire and previous wars to that. you need to read some history!!! They do not speak german in france thanks to us. the wars we have fought were to end slaughter and to help allow others to defend themselves. freedom" and "democracy are not religions. But they do allow one to whorship the way they choose. The very reason this country was started.

IRAN HAD A DEMOCRACY WITH PM MUHAMMED MOSSADEGH,BUT AMERICA OVERTHREW THAT DEMOCRACY WITH THE CIA,AND PLACED MOSSADEGH WITH THE SHAH MUHAMMED REZA PAHLAVI.SHAH'S SECRET POLICE SAVAK WAS TRAINED BY THE CIA AND MOSSAD OF ISRAEL.SAVAK KIDNAPPED,JAILED,TORTURED,AND KILLED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE FROM 1953-1979,AND IN THE MID-70'S INTERNATIONAL AMNESTY SAID THAT THE SHAH HAD THE WORST HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD.SO U.S TRAINED SAVAK AND IS COMPLICIT WITH THE DEATHS OF ALL THOSE YOUNG INNOCENT IRANIANS KILLED THE REVOLUTION HAPPENED AND U.S PERSONEEL WERE TAKEN HOSTAGE,BECAUSE JIMMY CARTER WOULD NOT HAND OVER THE SHAH.IRAN IS RESPONSIBLE FOR 52 HOSTAGES WHILE AMERICA IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE KILLED BY THE SHAH'S SECRET POLICE.IRAQ INVADED IRAN IN 1980 AND U.S DID NOT ORDER IRAQ OUT OF IRAN,AND INSTEAD GAVE IT CHEMICAL WEAPONS.GIVEN THESE TWO FACTS U.S IS INDIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE FOR 500,000 TO 1,000,000 IRANIANS KILLED.AMERICA HAS DONE MORE HARM THAN IRAN,ITS THE FACTS,ITS IN STEPHEN KINZER'S BOOK "ALL THE SHAH'S MEN".CAN'T DENY FACTS.IRAN ASSISTED U.S IN OVERTHROWING TALIBAN FROM AFGHANISTAN,AND U.S ACTUALLY OPERATED FROM IRANIAN TERRITORY.IRAN HELPED US GET RID OF TALIBAN WHICH HOUSED THE AL QEADA.SO THEY DID US A FAVOR.WHICH MEANS OBVIOUSLY IRAN IS NO WAY CONNECTED WITH AL QEADA,OR ELSE IT WOULD NOT HAVE HELPED U.S GET RID OF TALIBAN.WE COULD HAVE BEEN FRIENDS,BUT BUSH THEN CALLED IRAN PART OF AXIS OF EVIL,WHICH RUINED EVERYTHING.IRANIANS HELD A VIGIL ON 9/11,WHILE AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI CONDENMED THE ATTACKS.IF AMERICANS KNEW THIS THEY WOULD KNOW THAT IRAN COULD BE A FRIEND OF U.S,BUT AMERICAL RUIED IT.IRAN WAS A DEMOCRACY,BUT AMERICA OVERTHREW IN 1953.SO DON'T ACT LIKE U.S IS INNOCENT AND IRAN JUST HATES AMERICA FOR NO REASON.ITS NOW TIME FOR U.S TO REACH OUT.IRAN IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR 9/11,LONDON BOMBINGS,INSURGENY IN IRAQ(NO EVIDENCE FOUND YET SO IRAN IS NOW INNOCENT TILL PROVEN GUILTY)WHICH ARE MAINLY SUNNI,SPAIN BOMBINGS,NO PROOF IT ORDERED HEZBOLLAH TO KIDNAP THE ISRAELI SOLDIERS,BUT ALL THOSE RESPONSIBLE ARE FROM SAUDI ARABIA AND EGYPT LIKE THE 9/11 HIJACKERS,AND JORDANIAN LIKE ZARQAWIE IN IRAQ.THERE HAS BEEN NO IDENTIFIED IRANIAN TERRORIST.AND THOSE WHO WANTED TO BLOW UP THOSE U.S BOUND PLANES FROM UK.SAUDI ARABIA,EGYPT,JORDAN,PAKISTAN-ALL AMERICA'S ALLIES.NO 1 TERRORIST FOUND TO BE BORN IN IRAN.WAKE UP PEOPLE,AND IF YOU WANT TO REPLY,PLEASE USE EVIDENCE AND EXAMPLES TO MAKE IT MORE INTERESTING AND WORTHWHILE OR ELSE I WIN'T READ IT.YOU NEED EVIDENCE!

ANKE: you'll be more effective if you release the caps-lock. I agree with what you said

A note to Anke and all commenters.

Please do not submit COMMENTS in ALL CAPS. This typographical SHOUTING does not make your argument more compelling, just hard to read.

Thanks,

Jeff

To Jefferson Morley: Do not shut down the message board. The rules here are clear and reasonable. You can delete the unsigned comments and the ones who are using bad language, like "fools"

First off, you will never see that televised debate between Ahmadinejad and Bush, as there is no way Cheney and Bush's other handlers would ever let it happen - Bush would get destroyed.

You yahoo neocons keep yelling about Iran's government being corrupt, as if the republicans (or democrats for that matter) are any better. And at least Iran admits being a religious state / theocracy, as opposed to Bush's new rise of Christianity in the state.

This is another case by the way where Iran (like Iraq) is being asked to do something impossible - prove a negative. Iran could let a million inspectors into the country and give them free reign and still Bush and his coalistion of the willing (ie. Halliburton, McDonald-Douglas etc) would scream "OMG! They have hidden nuclear facilities! We just know it!!!11one!!" According to a Treaty which was drafted with the help of the US, Iran has an inalienable right to possess nuclear technology. If Iran stops enriching uranium now, they a) will be committing political suicide within their own country (read, Bush banning possession of firearms in Texas) and b) giving away their biggest bargaining chip. There is all this worry about the Iran's enriching uranium and making nukes, but be realistic, if Iran wanted nukes they could buy them cheaper on the black market, AND they'd be made from nuclear material found in either Russia or the US (ie. can't pin it on Iran).

The fact is, the US and the rest of the P5+1 have no legal basis to ask Iran to stop enriching uranium ... that is why they are offering amazing amounts of technology and possibily the removal of sanctioning. Iran has asked for clarification of the terms in the P5+1 proposal. EVEN IF THIS IS A STALL TACTIC, it is a diplomatic manouver and perfectly acceptable within the realm of politics.

Religion has never had anything to do with war. It is always evil men and women using religion to manipulate populations to gain power over others.

I can understand if the leaders of Iran want nuclear weapons to protect themselves from the unbelievable fire power of countries like the US and Russia. But as we found out in the "Cold War" years, the only thing you can assure is that your enemy will die also. If you push a nuclear power into a corner, the results will be terrible and terminal for you. If the United States, Russia and the other nuclear countries are so terrible, especially, the US, what do you think it would be doing if it was run by someone like Hitler or any number of other "soulless" people in humanities past? What we are fighting today are people who are willing to kill anyone, anywhere, as long as their objectives are met. They hide behind innocent populations and don't claim any national country as their home. Why? Because they know they cannot fight that type of war against a country like the US or Russia. But, due to the prospect of this new type of fighting, nuclear weapons cannot be allowed to spread. The cost is too great. The chance that someone will feel they can use them and not have to pay the terrible cost is too great.

Those who feel that the United Nations and its goal of a world government are going to fix the world's ills are mistaken. A government tries to normalize its citizens and thus remove the differences that naturally exist. Differences are good and natural. Trying to make people the same the world over will only increase the problems we have today. Somehow, someway, we have to figure out how to allow those differences and still be safe to live our lives and be happy.

IN REGARDS TO THE COMMENTS I POSTED ABOVE,I HAVE TO SAY IRAN HAS TO NOT LISTEN TO AMERICA,AMERICA IS IRAN'S NUMBER ONE ENEMY.AMERICA HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT PAIN AND MISERY FOR IRAN.AMERICA IS NO FRIEND OF IRAN,NOR IS THE ZIONIST REGIME,WHICH HAS TO GO BYE BYE LIKE USSR DID IN 1991.

Nor have you listened to us.

Turn off caps lock, or better yet, take your five pound pinky off of the shift key

I'd have to say that if Iran did, indeed, pursue nuclear weapons (there is little to no evidence that their program is anything but peaceful) then they have a perfectly legitimate rationale for doing so: the massive US nuclear arsenal (and we've been threatening them for years) and the completely unregulated Israeli nuclear arsenal -- which Israel has not ruled out using first. With neighbors like that, I might want a few deterrent nukes, too.

Guaranteed - IRAN IS NO THREAT TO US.

Unless NEOCONS can corner Iran into feeling threatened. Michael Ladeen, Frank Gafney, and many of these warmongers who have never served their country in the military have said again and again in the last 5 years, and i quote:

"... Antagonize Iran, demonized them in the mainstream media, and interfer with their purchasing of oil and gas products throughout the world ... until they angry and lash out at US, then we can go to the American people and say, see, see, they are bad people".

Let's put ourselves in other people's shoes for a moment. How would we feel in US if others antagonized us? Would we be just niceeee to them? No I don't think so.

The WORST thing about the NEOCONS is that Iran offered in 2003 a complete offer for resolving all of US/Iran issues through negotiations. The Cheney/COBAL/NeoCons threatened the State Department and refused to have it released at the time to the media ...

the Neocons did not want peace - they prefer to have Americans soldiers die so they can sell books on hate, war, ideology, and fist-rule.

But American people are the greatest people in the world and they will not be fooled again by these parasites.

Chris

Terry

Could not have sad it any better.

The bottom line for all the Muslim hatred lies in the blind U.S. support for Dictator Regimes all over the world. If you imagine the U.S. as a Crime Boss then these so called Muslim leaders act as its bully. They rule over their countries in a ruthless way with implied/express approval of U.S. I would only give the most recent example of the Military Dictator in Pakistan who murdered the former Chief Minister of the largest Province in Pakistan with a laser guided bomb and a commondo attack. This event happened roughly 3 days ago. Yesterday U.S declared that this event will not affect its relations with Pakistan.

It is shameful for a regime to kill people who oppose it through military means. But as long as the U.S. keep supporting these acts then these dictators don't care.

I was wondering what's the score was, with humanity's favorite game.

Maybe this link points at something.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocides_in_history

... try not to get too worked up over this... History is global & can teach.

No Fear.

or Maybe the earlier thread is confusing ...

How about a two-column list, where we put the name of the nation and then the number of casualties in total attributable to that nation...

Get the picture... seeing threat is something even hamsters do...
let's do a little better

cheers

Iran, or let me rephrase that, Ahmedinejad is a threat to the world...he's is nothing but a muhammed fanatic and wants to glorify himself in the islamist world.

Diplomatic chicken is exactly what Ahmedinejad is playing...he wants to take advantage now that US is in Iraq & Afganistan...

Consider: the US has invaded the two countries which share Iran's border, establishing military bases and stationing troops in each. Then it fills Iran's territorial waters with carrier groups and gives cluster bombs and bunker busters to Israel in its war with its surrogate, Hezbollah. This is AFTER the CIA coup in the 1950s and plenty of meddling afterwards, not to mention repeated threats from Israel, a nation known for taking unilateral military action.

Sometimes paranoia is just good thinking when people really ARE out to get you.

Life is so very complex. I can see the problems we are facing today have long roots. When it comes down to peace, what matters is what lies in the hearts of each man. In that there are fundamental differences between right and wrong, and even in believing in right and wrong. You shall know a tree by it's fruit, likewise we shall see these things unwind.
-Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own site.-
Isaiah 5:21

Iran wants nothing else than to eradicate the US, (The Great Satan). Take a trip to the World Trade Center Site......how quickly we forget that terrorists are killers!

Iran wants nothing else than to eradicate the US, (The Great Satan). Take a trip to the World Trade Center Site......how quickly we forget that terrorists are killers!

Iranian regime is evil or not has nothing to do with the real issue here. All I know is that Iranian people need to protect themselves from US and Israel's never ending aggression and murderous attacks. Look what they did to Iraq and Lebanon with impunity. They sent a real strong message to people of Middle East, "West is brutal and is coming to get you". So all of us living in Middle East (if we have oil or are a neighbor of Israel) should arm ourselves and protect our children from these wolves (Bush, Olmert, Blair and co.) who don't understand the language of logic. That is how I feel as a secular, moderate, educated and extremely mild mannered Middle Eastern person. Go figure.

John C: That attack was orchestrated by Sunni Saudis (our "allies"), not Shi'ite Iranians. The continued purposeful disinformation linking the two undermines a thoughtful and informed debate on the topic. Iran has rarely used terrorist methods outside of its own regional sphere of influence, and even when it did it was to support definate political goals, not achieve wholesale slaughter of civilians. Let's keep the debate honest, shall we?

John c, where do you get your "facts" from? Let me guess, FOX news and a bunch of hateful right-wing radio shows. Why do you think "Iran wants nothing else than to eradicate the US"? Because neo-con crazies stuffed it in your head, isn't it? What did Iran have to do with 9/11? Why hate so much when you can listen, think independently and try to understand things beyond the headlines feed to you. So much hate can drive you crazy, and you are going to end up looking like Cheney, Bolton and the rest of them. You don't want that.

Fahar, you sound niether mild mannered, nor educated. On the contrary, Maybe the wolves as you put it are a little worried that more buildings might be destroyed. Maybe they worry Iran has an unstable government which supports terrorist regimes. Regimes which aim to kill innocent Americans. We are a little angry about our planes being hijjacked, and in order to end the violence we must stop terror where it begins. Iran supports Hezbolla. Hezbolla attacked Isreal. Terror at it's best.

Yeah, Jeff, shut it down . . . unless you feel like your purpose here is to simply provide a vent where angry, frustrated readers can blow off steam. If you feel like it's worth your effort, moderate the comments, as you put it, ruthlessly. For every worthwhile comment, there are many more that are unreadable or worse, and those that offer anything resembling insight are rare.

Where's the reader comments about whether Iran's claim to want nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is plausible? It might be, you know, since they have a lot of raw energy resources but relatively little capacity to refine it into useful products; then again, it might that they just want a nuclear bomb. Where's the discussion of what an Iranian nuclear weapon will mean for the safety of ordinary people in the region -- should Iranians themselves consider the possibility that the rhetoric (wipe Israel from the map, etc.) and actions (support for Hizb'allah) will all but guarantee a preemptive disarming and decapitating strike by the US, if Iran acquires a nuke? And, not a word about the importance of Syria in the Iran vs. the West dynamic -- as if no one reading here has ever bothered to look at a map of the Middle East. So much worth discussing, so little time spent on much other than uninformed rants, either based on a misplaced assumption that Ahmedinejad wields real power within Iran, or on the lunatic left's caricature of the Bush administration.

As uncomfortable as it may be for some here (A.M., and probably at least a few others) the present US administration doesn't play realpolitik as its predecessors did, as its removal of the Hussein dynasty and replacement with constitutional self-government suggests -- it would have been cheaper and easier to engage Saddam and buy some measure of loyalty. I know it doesn't fit the script, but there it is.

Julee: Iran, nor Iranian-backed "terrorists" has never, to my knowleged, hijacked a plane. The 9/11 attacks were done by Sunni Saudis, not Persians. As far as Hezbollah goes, it is a multi-faceted organization that is pledged to defend Lebanon (specifically Shia Lebanese) against the many military forces at play in S. Lebanon -- Israel (of course), Marionite Christian militias, Syrian Army elements, Druse militias, etc. As such, they have limited their military operations to a very small, very specific region and have not attacked the US directly since (correct me if I'm wrong) the Beruit Airport bombing in the 80s. And we were on THEIR LAND at the time. So trying to lump all "muslim extremists" together under one umbrella misses the facts of the case.

Julee, if Americans, like you, really want to fight "terror", they should take a real good look in the mirror. What did over a thousand Lebanese women and children had done to deserve your (American made) cluster bombs? The words "terror" and "terrorist" are getting really tired and worn out. Death with bombs are death with bombs. Why do you think American bombs are not terrorizing the Middle Eastern people? You will never find peace if you can't be fair. That is a very basic lesson for anyone trying to be civilized. You do need to "educate" yourself and become "mild mannered" before your tax money kills more children in Middle East.

RC: Good points. Here's some debate.
Iran does have a legitimate need for civilian nuclear power -- which we acknowleged when we provided them with their first nuclear reactor. They have their own uranium, so using that for power instead of oil that must be shipped to third countries for refinement and then re-purchased by Iran is actually cost-effective for them. They have adhered religiously (no pun) to the dictates of the NNPT -- which Israel never signed and is, therefore, immune to inspection -- and only threw out the inspectors when they became frustrated that DESPITE NEVER FINDING ANY EVIDENCE of a military nuke program, the P5+1 continued to accuse them of trying to build a bomb.

The safety of ordinary people in the region is already in severe jeopardy: their two closest neighbors have been conquered by an unfriendly power and a rogue state in the region has a nuclear arsenal of 200+ nukes -- and a tendancy to act unilaterally. And our "ho hum" reaction to N. Korea's program has shown them what to expect: don't have WMD (Iraq) you get invaded. Have nukes (N. Korea) the US leaves you alone. So nukes are a good deterrent for them.

Don't forget that Syria is a secular dictatorship, not the radical Islamic state that Iran is. Also don't forget that for all the rhetoric about "unstable regimes" that Iran has had a stable representitive republic and a peaceful transfer of civilian power through several regimes for the last . . . oh, say, 35 years? Since the Revolution? And the only direct war they were involved in was with Iraq, and they didn't start it.

So I agree, the debate needs to be about the facts. The problem is, the current Administration doesn't want to see facts, only their propaganda take: "Iran=evil". While I'll be the first to admit that their human rights record blows in many ways, so does Saudi, Kuwait, Egypt, and other regional states who we eagerly ally ourselves with.

Why don't you bow then?

Dear julee,

I understand why American people are concerned over terrorist activities. I would put myself in other people's shoes. like Iranians, Lebanese, Palestinians, and many others whose loved ones have been killed in the US/Israel lead wars. Terrorists did something nasty and attacked only 2 buildings in the US, at most 5000 people died. The whole country wanted to take a revenge. The people who dislike the US goverment, have experienced the same sowrrow as American did on 9/11. I always ask myself, how come nobody attacks Canada, Sweden, Japan or other countries?! I would say, because these countries do not interfere others business and they are not policing the world. In my personal opinian the US goverment is showing a bad face. They are supporting democracy but they want to kill whoever disagree with them. They think they are always right, so does the goverment of Iran. That is the main reason for the conflict, because everybody thinks they are right and others should be wiped off! More force against these nations produces more terrorists around the world. Killing them do not solve the problem! I guess nations should learn how to talk and listen to each other and be fair.

Ummm there is one point i did not notice.
What about 3 mile Island and Chernobyl, Even if the purpose is peaceful energy a great resposibility comes with that power and knowledge. I may be incorrect but is Iran well know for its human rights and/or well suited to contain, protect, dispose of or even manage the potently most dangerous materials on earth? My concern is not that they have the power producing abilty or the abilty to produce uranim to sell as an export. My concern is whom they sell it, which i believe is the main concern, a nucler weapon does not have to be a Kilo ton weapon to be effective, it can be car bomb size in nature and cause major devistation. The counrty is not run by the goverment but by the Church/Mosque for a church to stay in Bussiness it needs people, people go to church for protection from the seen as well as unseen. If their church is preaching kill the infidels and we are inadvertally breeding the infidels, their church runs the state the state has uranium/plutonium ?????? Im not sure where i was going but I think that is enough.

"If you want to have good relations with the Iranian people in the future, you should acknowledge the right and the might of the Iranian people, and you should bow and surrender to the might of the Iranian people. If you do not accept this, the Iranian people will force you to bow and surrender." - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iranian News Channel (IRINN) on August 15, 2006

Enough said

Where are the annihilate the Jewish state comments. We have said the same things about Iraq, Iran, Syria, North Korea, Vietnam, Russia, etc.

He is engaging in the GWBush school of international relations.

Much more needs to be said

Julee wrote "Iran supports Hezbolla. Hezbolla attacked Isreal. Terror at it's best."

The United States supports Israel and Israel kills women and children with its grandiose, sophisticated, tactical, surgical, hi tech, laser guided missiles. Terror at its....(fill in the blank Julee)
;)

Julee wrote"'If you want to have good relations with the Iranian people in the future, you should acknowledge the right and the might of the Iranian people, and you should bow and surrender to the might of the Iranian people. If you do not accept this, the Iranian people will force you to bow and surrender.' Enough Said"

And Bush said if "your not with us your against us" Enough Said

Again look at the quote.One among many. Why did the world look to us to tell Isreal to stop the fighting?

Can you quote that as I have? Aren't you all glad that you can unload all your anger on poor little julee?

Julee....wise folks speak because they have something to say unlike others who speak because they have to say something. Im not trying to target you, but as an Iranian-American I take offense to you lumping Ahmadinejad and 70 million people into one category thats why I chose to rebute your poor little comments

Julee, are you pulling our leg? I have to say you succeeded in making us think you are for real. "Why did the world look to us to tell Isreal to stop the fighting?" That was a good one! ... Really? You don't know why?

Julee: Because Israel is our creature, and we keep it alive with our US tax dollars. Did we put pressure on Israel to end the war? No, we gave them a green light to "clean house". Had we told them to chill, chill would have ensued. But we didn't, because their war was supposed to advance neo-con interests.

As far as the argument that "those po' li'l Iranians just ain't SMART 'nuff to have nukes 'cause they ain't a democracy, they's a THE-ocracy" that argument is specious, condescending, and potentially racist. Israel is a functional theocracy, yet it has managed its nuclear arsenal adequately. Why not Iran?

And a few quotes, out of context and in translation, does not a policy stance make. I wonder how "Axis of Evil" sounds in Farsi . . .?

When someone does't agree I guess they are not "wise" in your opinion. I'm not the only one but I'll take the hit. We are still allowed that in this country.

And the world looks to the U.S. to tell Israel to stop with the overkill because the U.S. holds influence over Israel. Just as Sec of State Rice and Pres Bush called on Syria and Iran to influence Hezbollah to curb its attacks.

Terry, this is how "Axis of Evil" sounds in Farsi: US, UK, Israel.

Funny, because it should have gone, Iraq, Israel, US.

Did something happen to Iraq in the last three years?

The roots of this nuclear dispute with Iran are easy to understand and either Iran backs down or the West and Iran are going to hit a wall and that wall is war. The West is not going to allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon, period.

People can point to all the historical injustices and facts they want but Islam has two fundamental faults that continually bring it into conflict any other non-Muslim society it encounters.

1. Islam promotes peace, equality, and respect for life among its followers whilst giving Muslims justification and even encouragement to acts of violence against non-believers.

2. Islam does not have a clear distinction between the secular political needs and wants of people and the religious. Political expression is the expression of God's will, etc. and so negotiation and compromise with non-believers is very limited.

Several deep strands of western philosophical and religious thought fundamentally reject the above mentioned Islamic perspectives. And when it comes to nuclear weapons the West will not tolerate any society that holds those beliefs to have them and will go to war if necessary to stop them. No matter how many times they claim a "right" or an injustice.

Terry I can see you've been at this all day. Why is that? And you can put that quote in context if you like, again it is one of many and flows forth from utter insanity. Call it what you will, crazy is crazy. Bush can be called crazy too, but I'm looking out for my kids. Sorry if I tend to root for my own team. Sure does't take much to get you all riled up.

Iran has a right to peacful nuclear enrichment, however the comments of Ahmadinejad do nothing to bolster that assertion when he calls for Israel's destruction. If indeed Iran were producing a bomb it would not be much of deterrent against Russia's, Pakistan's, India's, China's and yes Israel's not to mention the submarines in the Gulf region that are armed with nukes. I think personally that the United States could not see a powerful (nuclear armed) Iran at odds with its own policies, and with sway over its neighbors (Israel, Turkey and Saudi Arabia), controlling the vital passageway of oil through the Gulf. Irans arguments are legit, This administration and the Brits calling Iran a liar is very ironic.

I think the reason the

"Islam promotes peace, equality, and respect for life among its followers whilst giving Muslims justification and even encouragement to acts of violence against non-believers."

And Judaism? Christianity?

They have similar beliefs, don't they?

Never mind about them, I'm trying to prove a point.

Welcome back Jeff, see what you missed? <:-)

PfP

Julee, your kids and your team are calling you. Why don't you go see what they want.

Justin, Say it loud say it clear!! We are on the same team!! Amen

There are more, far more non Christians in the U.S. than there are Christians else where. We sailed away from people imposing their beliefs. Don't like my opinions huh? I'm so glad my vote counts.

Before we discuss sanctions on Iran, lets see ... US has nuclear bombs and almost everyone on the Security council does. But no one else should have them? How is that supposed to work?
Should we first not practice what we preach as part of NPT?
Havnt heard of any UN resolutions to inspect Israel for nuclear bombs?
The issue here is that the world is begining to see through the unilateralism that the US has come to represent.
Unless we REALLY use diplomacy rather than use it as a ploy/excuse to go to war this is another calamity waiting to happen where innocent lives will be lost on both sides and the rich (Bush, Chenny and the oil/military suppliers (his base as referred to by Bush) will end up being richer.
Yes innocent US soldiers lost lives in Iraq where no WMD's were found and no imminent threat to the US was found and no links to Al Qaeda were found and the US president didnt have the courage to accept his info was incorrect and the war should be called off.
What a nation and shining example we would have been had we accepted this, handed over Saddam to his people for justice and got out of there.

Diplomacy works better than bombs, we've used it in the past.

The reason Iran can play diplomatic chicken with us is because the current administration has put the US in a chicken coop.

IRAN can not be trusted. I am an iranian lived there for 18 years. Iran doesn't need to have Nuclear Energy as they claim they need it. Iran is rich in Oil and Gas, all natrual resources.

For those who claim Islam promotes peace, well wake up and smell the coffee. Yes I'm talking to you who claims your religion is superior than others. When was the last time there was a peace in Islamic countries? Answer me you jurk.

On the other hand, where the f... do you think the Nuclear Technology comes from. Who do you think bult those Nuclear facilities? Imams, Mullas or bunch of Haloween custom freaks in black?

In the past century there has been nothing but war and blood within Mid east countries. You claim all the conflicts have to do with Western contries and America alon. You think U.S is the enemy, well sleepy, enemy always grows and build within.

One last thing, Persians are not Muslim. They are persians. Read the damn history before you open your mouth not knowing what you're saying.

While Lebanon and Israel are in a recovery phase now, a renewal of their conflict is alway possible until a land for peace deal occurs. If a peace agreement is ever reached with Lebanon and Syria, it would separate the national interests of those countries from Iran.
However, I doubt if that is possible under the present conditions. Israel is, at least, planning a strike against Iran, and, if that strike happens, a cloud of non-nuclear missiles will will come back and bite them. Israelis will be living in bomb shelters. As it has been noted, the same thing will happens if the Bush Administration launches an attack. In either case, I would imagine we would be attacked ourselves. Can anyone remember the good old days, when we only had al-Qaida to fight.

As an Iranian Physics student I must say, WE WILL NEVER BACK DOWN. Sooner you understand that the better for you and for us.
1. First Read NPT in full. Idustrial scale enrichment and research are Iran's right.
2. In the past 3 years IAEA has done more atomic inspection in Iran than the whole of the world combined. As regard to the refusals, If you read NPT you will know that inspectors are not allowed every where as per their wish such as searching presidential palace or intelligence Building in Tehran. As per NPT they are allowed only to the sites declared to Agency that are nuclear related. Further more Iran is in its full right to refuse specific individual inspectors or teams so that they be replace with other ones, if Iran doesnot trust them to be fair inspectors. Its not like a CIA agent sneaking to the IAEA and become an inspector in Iran demanding to check working table of president at his office and Iran says OK. YOU ARE AN INSPECTOR Go IN PLEASE! In addition according to Article 10 of NPT Iran has the full right to leave NPT at its pleasure and make Nukes.
3.NPT also says USA and other nuclear powers to be disarmed. USA and others are in clear violation of the treaty and should be sanctioned immediately. Furthermore if you guys are really in favor of democracy and freedom the why dont you give up your veto power. After all its no democratic, in democracy every one is equal.
4. Iran after Japan is the most affected country by WMDs given by westren Gov.s to Saddam who couldnot even manufacture simple rifles locally and had to import them, which eventually caused the death of 100,000 Iranians during Saddams agression against Iran supported by the Great USA. Iran has never killed a single American while American soldiers on the payroll of the biggest terrorist gov. in the world have killed direcly several thousand Iranians like shooting down of Iranian civilian airliner by US navy killing 269 people including 66 children and further more involved indirectly for the killing of more than One million Iranians. Remember only 3000 died on 911. FEEL the PAIN
5. If we do a simple statistical analysis of the deaths caused by Islam and christianity I can assure Christiandom will lose by a big margin. Christians massacred native americans native australians native pacificians native newzealanders native africans native south asians native east asians and of course Muslims. No other entity has been so successful at not only killing but also wiping out an astonishing No. of comunties languages cultures and countries. Never again compare yourself with Islam. Never.
6. Iranian revolution good or bad was brought on by the people of Iran and Americans are not allowed to have any say in it. Our resources are ours and will remain that way. We will defend them as we did during the past Iran US war in 80s in which US was figthing shoulder to shoulder with Saddam against us. British drained our oil wells from 1903 to 1953 for almost 50 years for free. And the original 1901 agreement was for 100 years so if we had not nationalized our oil you "Freedom LoveBirds" would still be draining oil for free. But No. Iran is now an Industrial country the biggest exporter of Cars in middleast. Completely an independent nation. Not a slave like Saudi Arabia or Jordan. Dont be overconfident. Afghanistan before invasoin did not even have a pencil manufacturing factory. Let alone weapons. Iraqi soldiers did not even have shoes to wear when Ameica invaded Iraq. Iran today makes sophisticated weapons and electronics. Further more Iran is not an artificial state created by a british or french diplomat over wine glasses in one night as most of the present countries you do messing with and is 20 times older than US itself. Iran can and will defend itself militarily if attacked by these Christian Visionaries who believe in the Apocalypse and want to bring the end of the world. Specially when some of them HEAR things too which others cant.
The last point: some facts.
Iran wins international robotic competitions frequenty.
Iran wins numerous medals each year in mathematics physics and chemisty olympiads each year and usually is in a higher ranking than US.
68.5 percent of university graduates in Iran are females much higher than US and the highest in the world. ( I Guess west just wants to make females a show commodity for your pleasure.)
Some of the latest research in physics and life sciences are going on in Iran.
We have been under sanctions for 27 years now. We dont give your sactions a damn.
Now its nuclear in afew years you will hear us from space, I can assure you on this one.
All the terrorists in the world are US allies and have been trained by the US. eg, Saudi Arabia the most undemocratic country in the world in which women value are no more than of goat and human rights means raw red beans in a wooden basket. all supported by US because they are good slaves.
First disarm yourself before disarming us. we make ourown fighter jets and missile and dont need yours. you can start by blocking the weapon sale to Saudis and Israelis.
US is now responsible for 800,000 Iraqis deaths during sanctions and 200,000 after invasion. Thats why its not even bothering to count the killings like that of a 13 year old Iraqi girl gangraped and burned to death along with her mother father and 5 year old sister by US Army soldiers. Iranian Army can never do such atrocities I can assure you. I you want to save humanity cut your department of war budget by 99 percent and instead reduce you 50 percent share in global warming. Infact the biggest danger to humans and one million other species on earth is not Iran but USA. Remember that.
I LOVE IRAN. I LOVE PHYSICS.

Julee...not to pick on you but what does that have to do with Iran and its nuclear program?

Any debate over who's at fault in the Iranian nuclear situation, the US or Iran, inevitably includes some comparison over the two. The problem is that the US is measured against the idea of an "ideal superpower"... one that promotes peace throughout the world and fixes every problem single-handedly; the US inevitably falls short in this comparison, as perfection with regards to international politics is impossible based on the very nature of conflicting interests worldwide. Iran, on the other hand, is measured against the idea of an "ultimate evil"... a country whose actions never stray far from murder and corruption; Iran is hard-pressed to ever meet such lofty heights of vice, and so they appear more favorable in many opinions. Ignoring for the moment all of the advantages the US has as a country and the disadvantages of Iran (points which make a comparison and judging of the two countries far more complicated), the good that has come from the US far surpasses what has come from Iran. Call America corrupt and evil as much as you want... I'm proud to come from a country that does so much good in the world, and continues to do such good in the face of criticisms and mistakes (and there have been some pretty big mistakes recently). Iran doesn't really doesn't do any good for the world, and they center their foreign policy on what's good for themselves (their leaders, not citizens). We should keep in mind that for all its international short-comings, the United States does more good in the world than any other country, which is more than can be said for Iran.

As an Iranian Physics student I must say, WE WILL NEVER BACK DOWN. Sooner you understand that the better for you and for us.
1. First Read NPT in full. Idustrial scale enrichment and research are Iran's right.
2. In the past 3 years IAEA has done more atomic inspection in Iran than the whole of the world combined. As regard to the refusals, If you read NPT you will know that inspectors are not allowed every where as per their wish such as searching presidential palace or intelligence Building in Tehran. As per NPT they are allowed only to the sites declared to Agency that are nuclear related. Further more Iran is in its full right to refuse specific individual inspectors or teams so that they be replace with other ones, if Iran doesnot trust them to be fair inspectors. Its not like a CIA agent sneaking to the IAEA and become an inspector in Iran demanding to check working table of president at his office and Iran says OK. YOU ARE AN INSPECTOR Go IN PLEASE! In addition according to Article 10 of NPT Iran has the full right to leave NPT at its pleasure and make Nukes.
3.NPT also says USA and other nuclear powers to be disarmed. USA and others are in clear violation of the treaty and should be sanctioned immediately. Furthermore if you guys are really in favor of democracy and freedom the why dont you give up your veto power. After all its no democratic, in democracy every one is equal.
4. Iran after Japan is the most affected country by WMDs given by westren Gov.s to Saddam who couldnot even manufacture simple rifles locally and had to import them, which eventually caused the death of 100,000 Iranians during Saddams agression against Iran supported by the Great USA. Iran has never killed a single American while American soldiers on the payroll of the biggest terrorist gov. in the world have killed direcly several thousand Iranians like shooting down of Iranian civilian airliner by US navy killing 269 people including 66 children and further more involved indirectly for the killing of more than One million Iranians. Remember only 3000 died on 911. FEEL the PAIN
5. If we do a simple statistical analysis of the deaths caused by Islam and christianity I can assure Christiandom will lose by a big margin. Christians massacred native americans native australians native pacificians native newzealanders native africans native south asians native east asians and of course Muslims. No other entity has been so successful at not only killing but also wiping out an astonishing No. of comunties languages cultures and countries. Never again compare yourself with Islam. Never.
6. Iranian revolution good or bad was brought on by the people of Iran and Americans are not allowed to have any say in it. Our resources are ours and will remain that way. We will defend them as we did during the past Iran US war in 80s in which US was figthing shoulder to shoulder with Saddam against us. British drained our oil wells from 1903 to 1953 for almost 50 years for free. And the original 1901 agreement was for 100 years so if we had not nationalized our oil you "Freedom LoveBirds" would still be draining oil for free. But No. Iran is now an Industrial country the biggest exporter of Cars in middleast. Completely an independent nation. Not a slave like Saudi Arabia or Jordan. Dont be overconfident. Afghanistan before invasoin did not even have a pencil manufacturing factory. Let alone weapons. Iraqi soldiers did not even have shoes to wear when Ameica invaded Iraq. Iran today makes sophisticated weapons and electronics. Further more Iran is not an artificial state created by a british or french diplomat over wine glasses in one night as most of the present countries you do messing with and is 20 times older than US itself. Iran can and will defend itself militarily if attacked by these Christian Visionaries who believe in the Apocalypse and want to bring the end of the world. Specially when some of them HEAR things too which others cant.
The last point: some facts.
Iran wins international robotic competitions frequenty.
Iran wins numerous medals each year in mathematics physics and chemisty olympiads each year and usually is in a higher ranking than US.
68.5 percent of university graduates in Iran are females much higher than US and the highest in the world. ( I Guess west just wants to make females a show commodity for your pleasure.)
Some of the latest research in physics and life sciences are going on in Iran.
We have been under sanctions for 27 years now. We dont give your sactions a damn.
Now its nuclear in afew years you will hear us from space, I can assure you on this one.
All the terrorists in the world are US allies and have been trained by the US. eg, Saudi Arabia the most undemocratic country in the world in which women value are no more than of goat and human rights means raw red beans in a wooden basket. all supported by US because they are good slaves.
First disarm yourself before disarming us. we make ourown fighter jets and missile and dont need yours. you can start by blocking the weapon sale to Saudis and Israelis.
US is now responsible for 800,000 Iraqis deaths during sanctions and 200,000 after invasion. Thats why its not even bothering to count the killings like that of a 13 year old Iraqi girl gangraped and burned to death along with her mother father and 5 year old sister by US Army soldiers. Iranian Army can never do such atrocities I can assure you. I you want to save humanity cut your department of war budget by 99 percent and instead reduce you 50 percent share in global warming. Infact the biggest danger to humans and one million other species on earth is not Iran but USA. Remember that.
I LOVE IRAN. I LOVE PHYSICS.

Mr Morley,
I normally don't like to post comments peripheral to the central issue - in this case Iran - however, perhaps the solution to this problem could be found in two message boards. One board for heavily moderated comments that could include comments from scholars, that contain citations, that are well-informed, and less rude. The other board could remain unmoderated, and users could be directed there who wish to make other types of commentss. This would be one reasonable solution.
Cordially

I thought people were supposed to post their names. I am getting very tired of deciding which anonymous poster is which. Please guys, help our brothas out, name your post.

"One last thing, Persians are not Muslim. They are persians. Read the damn history before you open your mouth not knowing what you're saying." Forgive me for I must educate my irate expatriot friend. Persian is an ethnicity, Iranian a nationality and Islam a religion. The majority of Persians, Azeris, Baluch, Lurs, Qashqai, Arabs is Uran are.....drum roll....Muslims...ta da....I have to agree with hime though and correct those who correlate Arabs and Persians. Two different ethnicities.

Justin: While you make a valid point about Islam, the EXACT SAME THING could be said about the other Abrahamic Monotheisms: they all promote peace, sunshine, and puppydogs for others of their faith, but little or no provision for the "infidel" outside of a conversion scheme. That's why I don't practice Monotheism.

I have "been at this all day" because I'm tired of propaganda and rhetoric occluding the issue, and ignorant rednecks touting quick and easy aphorisms in the hope that if they say it loud enough, long enough, it will somehow magically become truth. The Iran/Israel/US issue is a complex one that has centuries of context that must be understood -- as well as a library full of legally binding treaties that are supposedly in effect.

Do I like the thought of Iran with nukes? Hell no. Do I understand why they want them? Hell yes. But I think that a wiser course of action to prevent their acquisition could have been undertaken any time in the last six years -- and the current US administration has gone out of its way to antagonize the situation because certain parties in positions of power see the Iran issue as leading directly to Armageddon, the biblically sanctioned end-of-life-as-we-know-it, and I really don't think that the Book of Revelations should dictate US foreign policy.

John you are right. We are wonderful people. So the government has it's problems but overall we have a lot of love in our hearts for the world and invision a beautiful place, full of diversity,tolerance,and culture for us all. But how can we attain that with so many crazies out there who want to do harm. All that crap people spew means so little in the face of intellectual idealism. But how do we gain paradise when living next to hell?

Islamic and Judaic/Christian philosophy and perspective on life are not the same.

There is a long deep history in West starting with the Greek and Romans of a separation between the divine and the secular. And recognition of man's fallibility in understanding and implementing the will of God. The Islamic belief that the Koran is the "perfect" word of God is amusing and scary in its ignorance from a Western... and every other society's perspective.

I wonder when some Americans will wake up and face the music that Iran is a indirect threat to us and a direct threat to our friends if they obtain Nuclear and having the potential to make Nuclear Weapons to use against people that oppose them. And they have made statements that are hostile towards Israel and also have proven there actions by providing arms to the Hezoblah that are Anti Israel. Do you want a Regime to have power such as Nuclear Weapons When they obtain them. If there is no check on powers that are hostile towards other peoples. It is a recipe for disaster on the Global scale. Given nuclear technologies to any nation that is not resoponsible for there actions should never posses powers of this magnitude.

Nuke them and everything will be fine.

Terry, I very much appreciate your insightful and informative comments. But it pains me to see how your efforts to inform are going to waste. I feel you are talking to the brick wall here. I am afraid you are trying to reason with people who think "Nuke them and everything will be fine." is the way to go. It is a pretty ugly world when we have nothing else to be proud of but our ultimate killing devices. There will be nothing left of our planet if this kind of cowboy mentality continues to exist. Thanks for your comments anyway.

If we have nuke in 1939 what could Hitle could do?
He will try to make one for him and nuke England for sure.
Now we have nuke and our enemies will try to have nuke and nuke us for sure.
Nuke them first before it is too late.

Why does anyone listen to anything Taheri says ? The man is a total liar, what his bogus yellow ribbon story, and his equally nonsensical stories about how Iraq are in great shape.

It is unlikely that Iran's nuclear ambitions can be stopped. If realised, they will provoke a weapons race in the Middle East with unpredictable consequences.

I hate war, I want our troops out of Iraq, I don't like the idea of preemptive because it is against our priniple as I believe, but I will support a war with that rogue regime in Iran now. What would we do if Russian and Chinese just want us to be failed? They just veto and we could not do a thing.

What is needed is a strong resolution that Iranian ambitions of developing nuclear weapons will not be tolerated. For that reason, the U.S. and European countries have to be firmly united and push for strong political and economic sanctions against Iran if it fails to suspend the enrichment by Aug. 31 as demanded by the U.N. The failure of the international community to stand firm against Iranian nuclear ambition will prompt other nations to also go nuclear.

The failure will also make the U.N. lose its credibility as an enforcer of international law and the guarantor of international peace and stability. The firm attitude of international society will also give a strong message to North Korea, which is reportedly preparing for a nuclear weapons test.

how come qatar revoked the resolution on iran's nukes during the UN session?qatar is a small weak nation that could be destroyed by iran.but they did not go along with the resoultion,for they know iran is no threat.but america which is a superpower half way world away is shaking in its boots?pathethic.I LOVE YOU IRAN!

There will be no debating between Ahmadinejad and Bush...

What is there to debate?? Stop your enrichment or we nuke you. Period.

Yo Iranian Physics student......... you're so smart try using spell check before you post. I hope you can get your money back from your Kindergarten class. Oh by the way the pinball goes on the left side of the bomb.

Only god can bring about "the end". What we are dealing with here is mankind and the survival of our species. Each countries leaders are only looking out for their own. Each one feels they are right and God is on their side. We were each of us born into this tangled mess, who knows what is the real truth? But we are all guilty, if you are using a computer, your just as guilty. Petroleum. Plastic. Bush is trying to promote our country, he feels right. So even if this is all about oil, it is because he thinks it will help the people here.

"YOU FOOLS"...asks why Iran doesn't let inspecters in. Well, why don't the savage Israelis let inspecters in to look at their nukes? Hmmmm? The Israelis don't even admit to having them... let alone abide by the world's standards. Of course, Israelis don't think ANY rules of civilization apply to them. WHY does the US support them?

Ali,
You will back down after we nuke you.

There will be no debate between Ahmadinejad and Bush because Bush can't talk in a proper and comprehensive language and might embarrass America more than he already has.

THERE ARE AMERICANS LIKE HENRY MARTIN WHO DESERVE TO BE HANDED OVER TO INSURGENTS,HE'LL BE CRYING LIKE A BABY.HENRY MARTIN AND THE NEOCONS GIVE IRAN A BAD NAME.AMERICANS ARE BETTER THAN THAT.NUKE IRAN?KEEP DREAMING!ONE STRIKE ON IRAN,AND THE ZIONIST REGIME WILL BE GONE!

spell inspectors inspectors.....a lapse

anke, we are not shaking in our boots. But we are facing civil strife. Thats what terror has done to our country.

THERE IS REASON WHY U.S AND UK ARE ALWAYS TARGETED BY TERRORISTS,NEVER SWITZERLAND,FRANCE,CZECH REPUBLIC,POLAND,NORWAY,JAPAN,ETC.S STOP THIS NONSENSE ABOUT ISLAM VS. WEST,IT OPPRESSED PEOPLE VS. US/UK/ISRAEL.AS LONG AS U.S DOES NOT STOP MEDDLING IN MUSLIM AFFAIRS,THERE WILLBE HELL TO PAY.I HAVE NO SYMPATHY FOR THOSE KILLED IN U.S/UK/ISRAEL.THEIR ALL ANIMALS.AND TO THOSE WHO SAY AMERICA IS A SOURCE OF GOOD,THEN HOW COME AMERICA SUPPORTED DICTATORS IN IRAN,GUATAMALA,GREECE,CHILE,NICARAGUA,PANAMA,SAUID ARABIA,ARAB GULF STATES,EGYPT,AFRICAN NATIONS LIKE EQUATORIAL GUINEA,ZIONIST STATE OF ISRAEL,MANY MANY MORE?HUH?I GIVE EXAMPLES IN MY ARGUMENT YOU GIVE NONE,SO THERE!U.S HAS KILLED MORE PEOPLE THAN IRAN-HANDS DOWN!

Anke~
We are as you call us, "shaking in its boots" because you morons are going to sell your new technology to any Tom, Dick, or Harry (please substitute any these names with any Muslims name, just fill in the blanks) that has a few bucks in his back pocket. They have done it with Oil, why should Nukes be any different.

...Syria will be Islams fall. They will betray Iran...

...I've come to press the red button for you Ahmadijenad. Is it ready yet??

"What is there to debate?? Stop your enrichment or we nuke you. Period."

That is likely to be the ultimate "diplomatic" response. It is also directly counter to our founding principals. Onc