And off they go again!!!!!

This week America's poster boy for evil is once more Iran. America calling for countries to sever nuclear ties, allegations fly left, right and centre about Iran meddling in the affairs of Iraq, about Iran harbouring, aiding and abetting Al Quaeda... Iran is making the terrible mistake of simply being there at all...

There are old scores to be settled and many itchy trigger fingers in the Pentagon. The neocons (hell, they have practically hijacked the US government, why pretend it's Bush's thinking!!) probably want to isolate Iran and try to whip up a little "popular uprising" but if that does not work and the elections keep coming closer and the polls are unfavourable to Bush, it is entirely conceivable that they carry out their plan to "assist" the Iranian "freedom fighters in exile" to "overthrow a corrupt and repressive government" and install the son of the former Shah in his "rightful place of exploitation and obeisance to the USA", just like his dad... This has all the potential of becoming a sodding huge mess! Worse than Afghanistan (which is to weep for right now) and Iraq (unspeakable!!!).



I am getting tired of explaining to folks: those nuclear reactors that Rumsfeld et al are so surprised about (what would a country awash in oil and gas want with nuclear power, they ask, faces all puzzled) - puleeeze! The nuclear program was started many, many moons ago by the former Shah, at the instigation of the USA. The IAEA will bring out it's report one of these days but the program has always been under supervision of IAEA... I am not discounting the possibility that they are trying to become a nuclear power but hey, this is only to be expected. There is such an unbalance in power in the world right now and America is not shy of using hers, it virtually forces smaller countries to build deterrents. You dont see the Americans rushing at North Korea now, do you? They try other means but they sure as hell are not going to try and invade them like they did Iraq!



As for Al Quaeda, most governments in that region are not too happy with Al Quaeda and would rather see them go, Iran included. This is why Al Quaeda is so popular with the man in the street over there, because they see corruption - be it American or Arab - and speak out against it... and do something against it. They are the only group in the world, really, who is actively standing up to the Americans, which makes them utter heroes in the eyes of the people in the Arab world. Their methods suck but they are supremely successful so this will be going on for quite a while longer, I'm afraid. Iran is also afraid, they want no part of these zealots. Which is why they arrest and deport Al Quaeda members. And instead of getting a pat on the back from the Americans, they get this barrage of abuse from the war barracuda's.



[RANT] I am most definitely not a fan of the Iranian government, in fact I'm not a fan of any of the governments in the region, but I believe the Iranians themselves are more than capable of deciding for themselves what government they want and how they want it, without outside interference. It is because of outside (read: American) interference that the situation in Iran is the way it is today. How many more dictatorships and totalitarian regimes must America install in the world to protect her interests?? Enough is enough!!! If they would only stop doing so, they would probably find that their interests are served just as well. Money always finds a way...[/RANT]



America should really learn some diplomacy, I think if they try it, they would be surprised at how easily works! Instead of ordering their troops to ransack the Palestinian Authority's diplomatic mission in Baghdad and arrest 11 people!! They arrested the diplomats!!!!!!!!!!

The US State Department declared that foreign diplomats in Iraq do not have normal diplomatic immunity against searches and seizures because there is no Iraqi government to accredit them.

UnFRIGGINGbelievable!!!