Rapproachement With Iran

"...very, very crude."

That's how the Europeans are describing US pressure on Iran. Apparently it is causing concern around the world that our rhetoric could boost Iran's hard-liners.

I think that there are some valid criticisms that we have used too much stick and not enough carrot in dealing with Iran. We have taken a rather hard-line, belligerent stance towards Iran, one which is not unjustified.

But, if anything I think we haven't used enough of the stick. And the carrot has been completely misused. We need to use the carrot to show the Iranian people that we will reward them, not the Iranian government, for acts of goodness (like helping with Afghanistan or turning away the fleeing Saddamites). At the same time that we're dangling the carrot before the people we need to be whipping the Iranian government with the stick. How to do these? I don't have any specific ideas, but it would seem to me that we should be able to apply pressures and rewards where we want to an extent.

I also believe that the People's Mujahadeen should probably be taken off the list of terrorist organizations. In the aftermath of the Iraq war, they have shown a willingness to work alongside and for common goals with the US. And what of the accusations of "double standards?" Remember, one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. That excuse is a two way street. The clerics can go sit in a corner and sulk about it. The People's Mujahadeen has earned the right of a hearing in the US.

The good thing in this story is the fact that Iran is in a purely reactionary mode. They are only responding to our actions or words. That means that we have them off-balance; we have the initiative.

They're confused. They're scared. They're starting to think that the US might actually be willing to back up some of this rhetoric. They no longer are threatening us daily with annihilation, they now are threatening us with patriotism and nationalism. We have changed the rules of the game, and they no longer know how to play. But they know full well that they've been playing a losing hand up until now.

I would love to see rapprochement with Iran. The people are by and large friendly and intelligent. They could be a real asset in building a peaceful and prosperous Middle East. The only thing standing in the way are the nutcases running the asylum (and no, I don't think that the Son of Shah would be much better. They need a real government there.).

If crude is what it's going to take to get there, crude it is.

Probably just a French official complaining about our lack of Continental sophistication anyways.