linwood said:
For some reason I can`t put my finger on this has a ring of logic to it.
Can you explain your thoughts on this in more detail?
I`m interested on your take of Irans "similar ideas and interests" mostly
Like it or not, Iran is a stable and prosperous nation. And it's soon going to become a nuclear nation as well. We can stomp our feet and wring our hands all we want, but this is a fact of life and our tantrums are not going to change it. So instead of behaving like silly toddlers about it, it would make a whole lot more sense to look closely at Iran for some points of mutual interest and goals, and to begin working on developing a positive relationship with what will soon be a major first-world nation.
If we were to do so, we would soon discover that the Iranians are not a bunch of crazy religious zealots, or terrorists, or bizarre foreign madmen. What they are is intelligent, forward-thinking people who are fiercely proud of the progress their nation has made over the last 25 years and of their having done so independent of U.S. (or anyone else's) meddling. They detest the U.S. government because of the way we've treated Iran in the past (and rightly so), and because we continue to support Israel blindly and unconditionally. However, they admire the American people and aspire to become a more free and open society, themselves, as time passes. They do want to emulate our economic and creative freedom, but they do NOT want the cultural malaise that has come with it in the U.S.; they are Muslims after all, and are deeply offended by much of the cultural immorality that we allow in the name of freedom, and spread to the rest of the world. Which is why they have been progressing very slowly into the company of "modern" nations and is why even the youngest and most progressive-minded Iranians tend to still support the conservative Mullahs (sp?) when we speak against them. They want a slow and careful progression into a more modern and open society, but they also want to keep their Muslim morals and principals and to avoid the cultural decay that they have seen happen to the other first-world nations, like ours.
Because Iran is a stable and progressive nation, it is in their interest to help the nations around them toward peace and stability as well. And toward a more progressive and less extremist relationship with themselves and the rest of the world. In this, we share the same goals for Iraq. I do not believe that the Iranians are stupid enough to want to "take over" Iraq. That would bring them nothing but trouble, just has it has us. I also do not believe that Iran wants to see Iraq turn into a haven for all the world's religious zealots, extremists, jihadists, terrorists and despots, whether they are Muslim or not. This would create a very dangerous environment right next door to them, and they definitely would not want this any more that we would. So in actuality, I believe that Iran and the U.S. actually share the same fears and desire the same general outcome for Iraq. And if we were to work together with Iran, and allow them to take the lead (because they are a Muslim nation) in rebuilding Iraq, we just might be able to salvage an otherwise completely wrecked nation, and in the process, we just might find an new and important ally in the region.
There are many issues, such as Israel, that we and Iran would have to agree to disagree on, for the time being, but there are some very important issues that I believe we share a common goal with iran, on, and could work together with them on solving. And one of them is Iraq.
