Demonizing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Since the hostage Crisis in Iran in the late 1970's the United States and The nation of Iran have only been in contact with one another through third party relations. The Shaw of Iran in 1979 called the United States "The Great Satan". We have demonized Iran and Iran had demonized us.

Now we are in a situation with Iran that sadly seems to have no good solutions so long as George W. Bush or others like him continue to wield power in Washington. Iran has been enriching Uranium, for what it calls and "energy" program, and what Washington decries as an effort to create Nuclear weapons. Both sides have reached an impasse.

Iran is stretching it's muscles as a sovereign nation, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is as determined now as he was when he took part twenty-seven years ago in capturing American Hostages, to act independently of the influence of the United States. Recently Ahmadinejad challenged George Bush to a debate regarding world policy live on worldwide television. The White House scoffed as it Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is unworthy, despite that Iran is in a key position to become a Superpower in the Middle East and has long been positioning itself for that role.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has requested a meeting with George Bush during the meeting of the United States General Assembly, when the two men are not only in the same city, but the same BUILDING, within eye-shot of one another during the United Nations General Assembly in New York. So far, Mr. Bush has refused on the grounds that Iran has not verifiably suspended it's nuclear program. In my opinion, this is one more indication of George Bush's determination to provoke yet another Middle Eastern nation into a state of War with the United States.

The conversation Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wants with George Bush is in relation to suspending or moving forward with Iran's nuclear program. It makes no sense for Iran to suspend its nuclear program for the purpose of discussing with Bush, whether or not they should suspend their nuclear program. I must also say, I feel a bit insecure that a man leading the greatest nuclear superpower, a man who can't even pronounce the WORD "nuclear", is attempting to determine nuclear policy for the planet.

We hear constantly from George Bush and others in his administration that a world with a nuclear Iran is a dangerous world, but of course that is his position. The United States could not continue to act with impunity in the world if countries with whom we have philosophical and largely religious differences are equipped with the bomb.

In my opinion the question of Iran's Nuclear issues comes down to a few things:

1) EVEN IF Iran's intention is to produce nuclear weaponry, As a sovereign nation it has as much right to defend itself as any other sovereign nation in the world.

2) Since Iran has declared it's intention to continue a nuclear program, CLAIMING that it is only for the purpose of creating electrical power, it makes more sense to become their friends than their enemies in that venture. It seems to me that we should be HELPING them to create energy, not fighting them and threatening them with war. Somewhere along the line we got the idea that a show of force or the threat of force was the way to promote freedom. There is no doubt that their society views women differently than ours. There is no doubt that their religiously based society is more reactionary and deeply convicted in its morals than ours. This is not in dispute. The question is one of determining the best way to protect ourselves. The surest way to see to it that Iran DOES choose to produce nuclear weaponry with the aim of using it against our people is to continue to treat them as enemies.

At the end of the day, I think that we are demonizing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a way of securing a justified path to war, when in reality, the only level head in the game is a leader that has proven himself intelligent, capable, able to make friends on the world stage, educated, and steadfast in his commitment to the strength and security of the sovereign nation that he leads, Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.