Iran, Michael Moore, Obama – Very Scary Times…
Posted on 27 September 2009
I’m going to write a longer piece about Iran soon, but I wanted to ruminate more or less privately for a moment. I have been using the Huffington Post to send out into a wider world what I sense is happening. Why me? Well, why not you too?
I just saw the Michael Moore movie: “Capitalism: a Love Story” (as Arianna says, it’s a must). He ends it with a call for us to join him. I guess I feel I’ve been doing that a bit with this blog, with my pieces in the Huffington Post. Frankly, it’s been scary at times. There was a point on this blog where I was being attacked a lot. It will probably happen again. It’s not fun. But Michael Moore makes it easier. And the Iranian people make it easier.
There are things that are really worth sacrificing for. Does it have to be with your life? I sure hope not. I think you want to do everything you can to stay alive, because life is just plan more precious, miraculous and infinite than anything else, but it happens. People do it….
So I can damn well sacrifice my self comfort here and there. I can get a little scared. I can say things that people say make me seem stupid or arrogant or whatever. I can do that when other people are sacrificing so much more. So Iran…
What a flashpoint. One of my first pieces on the Huffington Post was pleading with George Bush (like he was listening) to not nuke Iran. At the time a piece had just come out by Seymour Hersh in the New Yorker that outlined the administration’s growing plans to nuke Iran. Since then it has emerged that many in Israel don’t say if, but when they are going to do it. On one level they’re right – the Iranian nuclear program is deeply imbedded underground. Tactical nuclear weapons are probably the only way to get the job done.
And if Obama lets that happen (either we do it or the Israelis do it) then where does that put Obama and the Democrats in comparison with Bush (who in the end didn’t do it)? The headlines around the world are starting to look like a gathering storm for just such a solution and I understand why. Ahmadinejad is an asshole. He appears more and more to be a puppet of the Revolutionary Guard. He and his people have crushed democracy. They are pigs and they’re building nuclear weapons. Horrible…
But what Pandora’s box do we open upon nuking another nation trying to be like us, trying to defend itself against us (and Israel)? Who are we then? What have we become? As citizens of a nation who openly and joyfully elected this President — what blood is on our hands then, what turn in history have we participated in if we allow this to happen? Who are we if we allow even the option of it to be put on the table without taking to the streets?
And if (God help us) he goes ahead and does it anyway – what do we do then??
4 responses to Iran, Michael Moore, Obama – Very Scary Times…
I don’t believe we’ll “nuke” anyone. Neither will the Israelis. One thing is certain, without ground support, there will be no war. Without a pathway thru Lebanon there will be no ground support. Israel tried to get this party started with their incursion into Lebanon, and Bush, to his credit, refused to cave in to Cheney and his minions so it fizzled. The only way to deal with Iran, militarily as well as diplomatically, is to make sure Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq are part of the solution. To achieve that end, we will need the cooperation and hands on assistance of Jordan, Egypt, and the Saudis. At least that’s my assessment.
These weapons they shot off are to impress their own people. They are also telegraphing the rest of the world on what they have. Hubris. It was stupid of them to do this. All they did was strengthen the hand of the United States, by bringing Russia and China on board. I think things will be dicey for a while, but I think this is a turning point. They fired missiles to let their own people know they’ll negotiate “from strength.” It’s all smoke and mirrors. Iran is on the brink of revolution.
New development:Iran is agreeing to turn over their enriched uranium supply to Russia, and talks are resuming.
See? Once they fired the missiles for their own people, to show how “bad” they are, they came around. Sort of.
The most pressing danger isn’t from a state. It is from a stateless terrorist who manages to pay for a “loose nuke” or a dirty bomb. Our biggest worry in that regard, truly is the instability of Pakistan. That is worsening by the minute. I think you would agree that the use of tactical nuclear missles is totally unacceptable. Mostly because the “tactical” part is a complete myth.
Time will tell. I agree with you about Pakistan. But it may be too late. Keeping troops in Afghanistan is no answer. Frankly war is no answer. How many years have we been using that method? How well has it succeeded? And now there are nuclear weapons. The worse thing for New York City is a weapon in the hands of terrorists, I agree. I shudder every time I think about it. And yet a dirty weapon is not impossible to make. Why hasn’t it happened yet? Will it happen? Did Bush with his methods make it more likely? I believe he did. Is Obama changing course? I don’t see it, but maybe a little…(Time will tell.)
This is an old saw, but using war as a solution to human zaniness is no long term solution. Nuclear is just bigger war. We have it. The others want it. How would you like to be in Iran and watch American just move into what ever country it wants because it’s tactically the smartest move for us — ie Pakistan?
I hope you’re right re Russia and Iran but there has to be talk (and talk and talk and talk) about the issue of whether we can really begin to shift human zaniness — ie evolution.
Evolve or die.
That’s where we sit. Not even global warming is the core issue. The core issue is whether humans can begin to evolve…
I’ve gone off point, re answering your question. But I’ve moved on point to (I think) what “the point,” of this blog is or what “the point” is headed towards or….
Here is a post from Michael Moore
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mikes-letter/those-you-your-way-church-morning-note-michael-moore#