The New Hegemon

Over the past three years, and with mounting alarm, Iran has steadily held Washington's gaze, gaining ever more notoriety as one of the most serious foreign policy challenges confronting the United States. An Islamist regime that was being written off on the eve of the second Gulf war is now asserting itself on the world stage and shows no sign of being subdued. Iran sees itself as a great power, and it is pursuing the nuclear capability that would confirm this self-image. It believes that it can play a global role and expects to be treated as a peer by the United States. Washington was certainly caught off guard by the surge in Iranian influence, and more so by the confident and provocative attitude that the country's hard-line leadership has lately put on display. As Iran has become more important to the United States, so has the problem of dealing with the Iranian question become the bugbear of the Bush administration. America's Iraq policy is becoming more and more overshadowed by America's Iran policy, whatever that is. The Bush administration has staked a very great deal on Iraq, but in the end it may be the administration's handling of Iran, more than of North Korea or even of Al Qaeda, that defines the Bush era in foreign policy.

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  thanks to The Agonist

Responding To Simon Rosenberg of NDN Regarding Iran

Now, all this is not to say that Iran doesn't have some very serious human rights issues it needs to address. But the country spends $6 billion a year on its armed forces. We spend $400 billion. Do they support Hamas and Fatah? Yes, they do. Do they support Hezbollah? Yes, they do. Do they send arms to both? Yes, they do. So what? We prop up and support all kinds of odious regimes in our foreign policy too. Again, I am not excusing it, but what Iran does has to be looked at in a larger context. For almost 150 years Iran was dominated by Russia, then the UK and then the US. Throughout all that time they tried to develop a real constitutional monarchy and then democracy. First in the revolution of 1906--which the Russians and Brits surpressed. Then in 1953 with Mossadeq (who we overthrew in favor of the Shah). Iran has more civil society, and is more modern than all the Arab countries. Women have 30 seats guaranteed in parliament--they are still treated in an absolutely odious and abhorrent fashion in general, as well as the treatment of gays, horrid. However, religious minorities in the country, including Christians, have churches and representation--although the Bahai are not treated well at all, it is better than Saudi Arabia where you cannot worship any other faith. Iran, again, is far from perfect, but it's not a fascist or a totalitarian society in any way. The Sunni's don't like Iran because they see Iran as a more modern state than their own, with much more popular sovereignty than in their own and it scares them. So, take this into to consideration. Iran is far, far, far from perfect, but it has a lot more to offer than any of the Arab states, and it does offer its people a lot more than they do.

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A Strike Against Iran Closer Than You Think

Think about this: the president is literally under siege politically, we're preparing a 'surge' in Iraq. At the same time we have a buildup of naval forces near Iran ongoing, as Forbes reports:

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