What's to be done about Iran?

[Ian]

As time passes, oil producing nations only gain in power relative to oil consumers like us. Time is definitely not on our side.

Ah, but the end of the Oil Age is in sight. Opinions differ, of course, but as for mine: the more I research the subject, the more I'm convinced of it.

Which isn't necessarily a good thing for stability in the middle east, btw. A good many states are wholly dependent upon oil revenues, and they're top-heavy without the capabilities to compete well in a globalized economy without their oil exports. Iran going nuclear may seem like a minor issue compared to the shocks those nations feel once their top export plummets in demand, and it will.

[sandinista]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

[DRSB]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

I for one feel more comfortable knowing that only a couple of nations have them rather than everyone who feels like having them.

[sandinista]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

I for one feel more comfortable knowing that only a couple of nations have them rather than everyone who feels like having them.

Not sure if your "comfort" plays into it. Someone in Iran would feel more comfortable if the US and Israel didn't have the bomb and they did.

[Gawd]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

The Jewish "lobby" groups will ensure that never happens and lynch anyone that tries to do it.

[Ian]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

Sounds fair. But sometimes some things are more important than fairness. I'd rather not see the other side of a nuclear-capable Iran just for the sake of fully living up to the principle of being fair. Better to be blamed for hypocrisy without the disaster of a nuclear Iran than to be blamed for negligence after the fact.

"Since several countries already have them, that means everyone else who wants them should be able to do it." I'm so sick of that line of reasoning. All idealism, no realism.

[Gawd]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

Sounds fair. But sometimes some things are more important than fairness. I'd rather not see the other side of a nuclear-capable Iran just for the sake of fully living up to the principle of being fair. Better to be blamed for hypocrisy without the disaster of a nuclear Iran than to be blamed for negligence after the fact.

"Since several countries already have them, that means everyone else who wants them should be able to do it." I'm so sick of that line of reasoning. All idealism, no realism.

Iran isn't the one stealing land from people of other races, unlike the USA and Israel. Iran has shown that it deserves to have nuclear capabilities, unlike the USA and Israel.

[Warren Dew]

Ah, but the end of the Oil Age is in sight.

Oh, the end of the oil age is definitely in sight, because the world is going to run out of it.

Until then, the oil producers hold all the cards.

[Ian]

Iran has shown that it deserves to have nuclear capabilities

How so?

[Warren Dew]

Iran isn't the one stealing land from people of other races, unlike the USA and Israel. Iran has shown that it deserves to have nuclear capabilities, unlike the USA and Israel.

The U.S. doesn't annex the land it invades any more than Iran does.

[Gawd]

Iran has shown that it deserves to have nuclear capabilities

How so?

Iran is not the one starting wars around the world under the guise of "democracy" and stealing land from non-Jews/white people, unlike the USA and Israel.

[Gawd]

Iran isn't the one stealing land from people of other races, unlike the USA and Israel. Iran has shown that it deserves to have nuclear capabilities, unlike the USA and Israel.

The U.S. doesn't annex the land it invades any more than Iran does.

Tell that to the American puppets in Iraq.

[klr]

So then give Iran the bomb.

Why is that a better solution than taking it away from Israel?

It's one or the other. Israel, the US, Russia etc give up their nukes or they have no right to ask other countries not to have them. I agree though, it would be better if all countries gave them up instead of all countries having them.

But it does not follow from there that everybody having them is better than only a few people countries having them.

Another point is that possession of nuclear weapons is largely irrelevant in many contexts. For a variety of reasons, Israel's nuclear weapons are useless against the Palestinians.

[Warren Dew]

Tell that to the American puppets in Iraq.

The American puppets who go to Tehran to get their orders, you mean?

[Ian]

Ah, but the end of the Oil Age is in sight.

Oh, the end of the oil age is definitely in sight, because the world is going to run out of it.

Until then, the oil producers hold all the cards.

They do, and supplies are definitely limited. But some alternative power sources are going to make oil and gasoline nearly obsolete for much of the advanced world. Photovoltaic power capabilities continue to grow exponentially, advanced battery power storage is developing rapidly, there's always nuclear options, and recent developments in fusion power have been very promising. I think they'll compete well enough to take the place of oil before oil shortages become acute.