LET'S DANCE!

All of us want to end the agony in Iraq with the least possible "collateral damage."
I have already offered my modest proposal (1/15/07 blog) in three parts: 1) get a
just and lasting peace arrangement in Palestine. 2)Establish diplomatic
relations with Iran, with the view of working together on mutual concerns,
particularly in Iraq. 3) Offer the Sunny resistance one last chance to end the insurgency in exchange for semi-autonomy and a fair share of the oil revenue, understanding that if they refuse, they will be ruthlessly and thoroughly crushed. One stone won't be left on top of another in the areas that are still resisting. This
can't be allowed to drag on. It will spread to neighboring countries if it does!

Now I have received welcome and much-needed support via Tom Friedman's (TF)
column today, in The New York Times. Tom travels widely in the Middle East, has
lived there, and cultivates key contacts throughout the region. I am not a fan
of his love for globaliztion, or his cheer-leading for big business, but on this
question, he's got some persuasive facts that make a lot of sense.

TF lists a number of indications that the people of Iran may be open to improved
relations: 1)Iranians were among the few on 9/11 to hold spontaneous pro-U.S.
demonstrations. 2) They have long protected their Christians and Jews. 3) They
hold regular elections, and their women vote, hold public office, and are fully accepted in the work force. 4) They actively helped the U. S. defeat the Taliban in
Afghanistan, and are as strong in their opposition to al Qaeda as we are. 5) Their
brand of Islam (Shia) is open to reinterpretation in light of modernity. 6) They
have more bloggers per capita than any other country in the Muslim Middle East.

I would add that the Iranian's language (Farsi) is the 3rd most-used language on
the inter-net, after English and Mandarin Chinese! The young people in Iran, who
make up the majority, love everything American except our current leadeship and
it's looney foreign policy. Most of us are in that same boat with them!

As TF continues to point out: "The hostility between Iran and the U. S. since the
overthrow of the Shah in 1979 is not organic. By dint of culture, history and
geography, we actually have a lot of common interests with Iran's people." He
reports a conversation he had in Davos with Mohammad Hossein Adeli, Iran's
former ambassador to London, who told him: "there is now a debate in Iran as
to whether we should continue to act so harshly against the Americans . . . There
is now more readiness for dialogue with the United States." The Iranians
appreciate that that we have destroyed their two biggest enemies: Saddam and
the Talaban.

It's true, of course, that Iran has sponsored terrorism against us. That was in
Lebanon, where we were supporting Israel. That's why Palestinian peace must
come first. Here I disagree with T. F. He says resolving the Iran-U. S. conflict
must come first, then the Israel-Palestine conflict. But Iran will not trade
away it's support for Hezbollah and Hamas as long as that fight continues.
Once that is settled, those terrorist organizations will be out of business.
Their whole reason for existence is that struggle. Once Hezbollah and Hamas
are at peace with Israel, and Iran no longer needs to support them, we will
lose our excuse for refusing to talk to Iran because "they support terrorism."

By the way, we have something else in common with Iran: we both have
crazy presidents who are losing popular support and have been beaten in
recent elections. They are dangerous because they may want war to
bolster their flagging support. The American people are not blameless:
we allow our crazy president to continue a criminal enterprise in Iraq that
keeps on killing with no achievable purpose, no plausible rationale, no
legal or moral justification, no logic, no reason, no end in sight.

jgoodwin004@centurytel.net