Name:   copperline - Subject:   In support of concluding this agreement with Iran Date:   8/13/2015 5:37:36 PM

This one has been getting very little attention on the forum, so here goes.    I think it's by far a better idea to sign on to an agreement with Iran whereby they agree to not develop nuclear weapons for at least 10 years, and agree to inspections to verify their compliance than to refuse the agreement, lose the support of our international partners who have imposed economic sanctions on Iran, and thereby set the stage for Iran to develop.... at a rapid pace, if they choose... of nuclear weapons.

We, along with Europe, China & Russia, imposed economic sanctions on Iran to force them to the negotiating table so that we could impose limits on their nuclear development.  They complied, and the negotiations commenced.   Our partners are satisfied with the agreement and are ready to remove these sanctions.   The leverage that brought Iran to the table is about to be lost.   

There is a myth here in the US that all we have to do is refuse to approve the deal, and we can somehow force Iran into completely forgetting that they have the technical knowledge required to build nukes.   The myth assumes that US economic muscle is so powerful that even countries like Russian and China will not resume economic relations with Iran out of fear of our response.

For me, it's worth remembering that Iran is now experiencing an  internal political swing toward moderation, different from the past... and that this political moment in Iran is probably fairly tenuous.   If the Moderates can't prove to Iranians that they can bring progress, then you would expect a resumption of the more radical hardliner's rule.   Iranian hardliners are just as opposed to agreements with the US as conservatives here are.

Yes, it's true that there is still a lot of "death to America" chanting going on.   Their people are responding to years of their own propaganda.   When Iranians watch US TV, they also see plenty of evidence that we see them as our mortal enemy, too.   All of that rhetoric is BS, and needs to be toned down.   Both governments have been shaping their respective public opinions for a long time, and this is not easily undone.    However, in the end, Iran does not pose an existential threat to the US..... and is not completely populated by mindless fanatics who want to die in a nuclear fireball.   They may have a very different world view than we do, but they have families, children, hopes for the future....  and would rather have peace than war. 

That is not to say that all we need to do is casually threaten to incinerate them and they will submit to our will.   A war with Iran would be more horrific, and far less satisfying, to the US public than we commonly imagine.   We should be more pragmatic, realistic and rational about this whole issue and sign on to this agreement.