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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| The World Bows to Iranian Regional Hegemony |
| 2015-03-05 |
| [David P. Goldman, PG Media] The problem with Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu's address to Congress March 3 was not the risk of offending Washington, but rather Washington's receding relevance. President Barack Obama is not the only leader who wants to acknowledge what is already a fact in the ground, namely that "Iran has become the preeminent strategic player in West Asia to the increasing disadvantage of the US and its regional allies," as a former Indian ambassador to Oman wrote this week. For differing reasons, the powers of the world have elected to legitimize Iran's dominant position, hoping to delay but not deter its eventual acquisition of nuclear weapons. Except for Israel and the Sunni Arab states, the world has no desire to confront Iran. Short of an American military strike, which is unthinkable for this administration, there may be little that Washington can do to influence the course of events. Its influence has fallen catastrophically in consequence of a chain of policy blunders. The powers of the world hope to delay, but not deter, Iran's eventual acquisition of nuclear weapons. The best that Prime Minister Netanyahu can hope for is that the US Congress will in some way disrupt the Administration's efforts to strike a deal with Iran by provoking the Iranians. That is what the White House fears, and that explains its rage over Netanyahu's appearance. He must display seething rage. His mooslim base demands it ! Tehran may overplay its hand, but I do not think it will. The Persians are not the Palestinians, who discovered that they were a people only a generation ago and never miss an opportunity to miss and opportunity; they are ancient and crafty, and know an opportunity when it presents itself. Most of the world wants a deal, because the alternative would be war. For 10 years I have argued that war is inevitable whatever the diplomats do, and that the question is not if, but how and when. President Obama is not British prime minister Neville Chamberlain selling out to Hitler at Munich in 1938: rather, he is Lord Halifax, that is, Halifax if he had been prime minister in 1938. Unlike the unfortunate Chamberlain, who hoped to buy time for Britain to build warplanes, Halifax liked Hitler, as Obama and his camarilla admire Iran. China is Chamberlain, hoping to placate Iran in order to buy time. China's dependence on Middle East oil will increase during the next decade no matter what else China might do, and a war in the Persian Gulf would ruin it. Until early 2014, China believed that the United States would guarantee the security of the Persian Gulf. After the rise of Islamic State (ISIS), it concluded that the United States no longer cared, or perhaps intended to destabilize the region for nefarious reasons. But China does not have means to replace America's presence in the Persian Gulf. Like Chamberlain at Munich, it seeks delay. |
| Posted by:g(r)omgoru |
| #5 "Why the rush for a deal with Iran?" Because ValJar knows that after '16 they may not be dealing with someone quite as full of { shit | himself } nor as foolish. Strike now while the iron is stupid and all that. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2015-03-05 17:09 |
| #4 Yeah. The sanctions are hurting the Persians and that makes ValJar sad. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2015-03-05 16:17 |
| #3 "Why the rush for a deal with Iran?" Remember all these 1001 night stories wherein an evil wazir lead the stupid Khaliff by the nose. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2015-03-05 15:54 |
| #2 One question that has been nagging me is this: "Why the rush for a deal with Iran?" No one has been pushing for it except the Obama administration. One theory I've read is that he wants a legacy. Maybe. I mean, after all the failures in Libya, Egypt, Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere he might be craving some kind of success. But it's hard to imagine anybody being so stupid as to believe that somehow Iranians will end up liking him. They'll break whatever agreement is made and stomp all over Obama's legacy if the Israelis don't nuke them first. |
| Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 2015-03-05 15:34 |
| #1 Like Chamberlain at Munich, it seeks delay. As Edmund Burke said: “Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it.” Netanyahu understands history far better than Obama. Elie Wiesel most certainly understands the stakes involved. Obummer most likely missed those lessons when he was smoking with the "Choom Gang." One question that has been nagging me is this: "Why the rush for a deal with Iran?" No one has been pushing for it except the Obama administration. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2015-03-05 11:44 |