A Republican making sense on Iran
As Bush/Cheney and the neo-cons engage in sabre rattling over Iran, Republican Senator Peter Hoekstra [R-MI] offers a voice of reason. In yesterday’s Washington Post article, Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said the US is planning for “potential military courses of action” as one of several options against Iran.
Considering the weakened state of America’s military, extremely stressed by Bush’s failed plan and lack of a coalition in Iraq, it would foolish to consider entering a war with Iran. It’s time we start engaging our enemies with intelligence and diplomacy.
Republican Congressman Peter Hoekstra agreed today on CNN:
“I believe that reaching out and engaging with Iran, but doing so with Russia, doing so with our European allies, recognizing that they do have contacts into Iran, and engaging in a full-court diplomatic press with Iran is a good thing to begin the process of doing that.
You know, we’re not going to go into Iran militarily. … Iran is not Iraq. And going in there militarily would be, from my perspective, a huge mistake.”
Wow, what happened to cowboy diplomacy? We can see where that has gotten us.
The nation’s top military officer said yesterday that the Pentagon is planning for “potential military courses of action” as one of several options against Iran, criticizing what he called the Tehran government’s “increasingly lethal and malign influence” in Iraq. Why should Iran not have influence in Iraq? A large population of Iraq has either Iranian ancestry or is related to someone in Iran. The two nations have historical links spreading over several thousands year.
What are we doing in Iraq? Why are we in Iraq? We have military presence in Afghanistan, Iraq and military bases in several locations in Persian Gulf. Why are we there? These locations are not in our hemisphere.
What are we doing in Persian Gulf the front door to Iran a country 7500 miles from home? Please don’t report the same often stated phrase, we are there to protect our national interests. What national interests? “We are there to protect the Persian Gulf”, we have said. Are we protecting the region against England or France? Iran has not attacked any country during previous 250 years; she has been attacked, bombed, and threatened during this last 150 years.
Iranian dilemma has not changed over the last 150 years; still Iran is one step away from being dismembered, colonized and humiliated. Time magazine in an article named Persian Paradox (Monday September 08, 1941) reported:
“As for the poor Persians, their attitude was aptly summed up in a Punch cartoon of the period. It showed a Persian cat apprehensively sitting between a lion and a bear. “I will pat its head,” says the bear, “and you shall stroke its tail.” Pleads the cat: “But I have not been consulted!”
Today, the same game is being played with Iranian people; the players are the same actors, the same motivations. Have we not killed enough during this last 100 years? Yes, we have.