A Glimmer in the Middle East
I don't know how closely everyone is following the bouncing ball of our Middle East policy, but President Bush made some unsettling remarks about Iran (and Syria) in his speech about Iraq, Wednesday night. I was, therefore, happy to have run across this article, which suggests somebody in the administration knows how to apply pressure to other nations without using the military, and is doing so rather effectively.
Aside from that detail, here's a spot for general discussion of the president's new policies on Iraq (and Iran and Syria), and where everybody thinks this train is headed. Do you feel hopeful? Is there another direction you'd prefer? Do you think the Iraqi government can/will deliver on its promises? Should Congress step in, and if so, how? And what are the politics, present and future?
Aside from that detail, here's a spot for general discussion of the president's new policies on Iraq (and Iran and Syria), and where everybody thinks this train is headed. Do you feel hopeful? Is there another direction you'd prefer? Do you think the Iraqi government can/will deliver on its promises? Should Congress step in, and if so, how? And what are the politics, present and future?
posted by juvenal_urbino | 3:25 PM
10 Comments:
Interesting article. Although part of the plan against Germany was the "shame" aspect. It wasn't just monitary. With Iran, it is / will be all about money (I don't think their leader will be shamed into anything). It is good to see that the pressure is working to some extent, though. Do you know, JU, how or if this affects the citizens of Iran? Or is it strictly something in the banking system? That somehow doesn't keep someone from getting food?
As for Bush's plan...I'm not smart enough to figure out a good solution. In the last thread, McCain's defense of Bush's plan came up a couple of times. Just wanted to point out that in the article that Al (?) linked (which he said he'd only read the title of), McCain's defense wasn't all that strong. It read more like a challenge to those opposing it to come up with something better. Which he didn't think they were doing.
As for your questions about hope...I don't really have a lot of faith that this is going to end well for anyone. There really doesn't seem to be a good option. More troops isn't going to *make* different ethnic or religious groups not hate each other. Withdrawal isn't going to keep them from killing each other. My hope is for a MLK or Ghandi or Tutu type leader to come from within the MidEast and change the way people think.
Do you know, JU, how or if this affects the citizens of Iran?
I don't. I would assume it does, given that it affects Iran's ability to participate in the international oil market, and that's pretty much their entire economy.
The one thing about the current plan that gives me any hope at all is the installation of Gen. Petraeus as the commander of ground forces in Iraq. He seems to genuinely understand what the military needs to do (and not do) for the American mission in Iraq to succeed.
Here's another really terrific article. I don't know whether to be hopeful about its hopeful parts, or finally demoralized by the rest of it.
A side-effect of our problems in Iraq: we can't push other states in the region to improve their respect for human rights and democratic reform.
To wit:
CAIRO, Jan. 15 — In the days before Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with officials in Egypt, the news media here were filled with stories detailing charges of corruption, cronyism, torture and political repression.
Cellphone videos posted on the Internet showed the police sodomizing a bus driver with a broomstick. Another showed the police hanging a woman by her knees and wrists from a pole for questioning. A company partly owned by a member of the governing party distributed tens of thousands of bags of contaminated blood to hospitals around the country. And just 24 hours before Ms. Rice arrived, the authorities arrested a television reporter on charges of harming national interests by making a film about police torture. The reporter was released, but the authorities kept the tapes.
Ms. Rice, who once lectured Egyptians on the need to respect the rule of law, did not address those domestic concerns. Instead, with Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit by her side, she talked about her appreciation for Egypt’s support in the region.
This is one unpredictable blog, btw. I thought people would have a lot to say on this topic.
If we're going to go to war with Iran, I guess we'd better do it soon, before we rehab their air force for them. WTF?!
WASHINGTON - The U.S. military has sold forbidden equipment at least a half-dozen times to middlemen for countries — including Iran and China — who exploited security flaws in the Defense Department’s surplus auctions. The sales include fighter jet parts and missile components.
...
Federal investigators are increasingly anxious that Iran is within easy reach of a top priority on its shopping list: parts for the precious fleet of F-14 “Tomcat” fighter jets the United States let Iran buy in the 1970s when it was an ally.
...
The Pentagon recently retired its Tomcats and is shipping tens of thousands of spare parts to its surplus office — the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service — where they could be sold in public auctions. Iran is the only other country flying F-14s.
I'm ashamed to admit that I'm so woefully ignorant of Middle East policy matters that I'm not able to contribute much anything worthwhile. I enjoy reading other's thoughts, however...
(I bet if I posted something about Saddam's half-brother's head actually leaving his body during the decapitation... uh, I mean, execution, that someone would comment!)
:-)
I believe Bette Davis said it best, when she said, "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night."
So is the glimmer in the Middle East an oncoming train?
:-)
I wish someone knew the answer to that.
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