Back to Iran, where the protests continue without support — or even comment — from the White House:
Not a few Western analysts remain skeptical about the staying power of the Greens and their ability to bring about a political transformation of the country.
They point to the lack of a distinctive opposition leader in the face of a robust security-intelligence apparatus. The realists in Washington note that neither street demonstrations nor increasing internal divisions within the regime have brought about a significant change in behavior.
But this is a superficial and impatient reading of the internal situation in Iran. Iran is less stable and secure than at any time in the past 30 years, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government has been forced to fight on several fronts simultaneously.
It’s a good article, although a bit frustrating due to a bit of wishful thinking. Read:
[Tehran] is battling over the nuclear program with the international community, which is starting to coalesce on sanctions.
Wake me when Russia and China even look like they’re pretending to consider to possibly think about appearing to get on board with a tough sanctions regime.
Call me cynical, but have sanctions ever worked anywhere, ever? Seriously, without serious military muscle to enforce some sort of blockade, when have sanctions ever pressured a country to act contrary to what they believe to be in their interest?
If we want to stop Iran from building nukes, I see two choices: we blow the hell out of any facilities capable of enriching weapons grade material or we tacitly allow Israel to do the same. They have demonstrated time and again that they will not honor any agreements that limit their capability in this matter. They cannot be trusted and further negotiation is fruitless.
Please understand that I am all for diplomacy when it looks like there might be a chance of it working, but there comes a time when you must acknowledge that there is no common ground, that we don’t speak the same language as it where. That is where I think the current administration falls desperately short. They do not realize that with some worldviews, there is no negotiation, no common ground.