America must have a dialogue with Iran

As many of you know, the United States and Iran have had very bitter and tense relations following the 1979 revolution. In the last 30+ years, the United States and Iran have been adversaries with one side accusing the other of this and that. This has become a sort of political theater and it seems to me that both sides are playing games. We are in 2011 right now and over 32 years have passed since the overthrow of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was overthrown by the United States and British governments because he would not listen to them and the Shah was in charge of OPEC. While he was in charge of OPEC, the Shah would charge whatever price he wanted. The United States did not like this and they were responsible for his overthrow. There is not even a mention of this from the controlled US media. Former US President Jimmy Carter and his administration were in fact responsible for the Shah’s overthrow which led to the establishment of Iran’s current regime. This fact is out there and it is documented although the US media does not want you to know this. They do not want you to know this because they think that they are the good nation of the world while any nation that is not friendly to US interests is considered an enemy. This kind of thinking is exactly the reason why the US attacked Iraq and Afghanistan and destroyed both countries.

For over 30 years Iran and the United States have not had diplomatic relations with each other. The United States has continued to accuse Iran of using its nuclear technology to build nuclear weapons while Iran insists that it is only using that energy for peaceful purposes. Which side is telling the truth? It is hard to know at this point. But one thing is certain. As long as the United States uses language of force and coercion, nothing good will come out of it. The US has been doing this for over 30 years and where has this led to? It has led to nothing good.

It is true that Iran’s current regime has been guilty of various human rights abuses but the continued use of harsh language by the United States will cause it to go nowhere good and it will not be able to restore relations with Iran. The US may have to settle with Iran having nuclear weapons because any attack on Iran by the US or Israel will lead to consequences too terrible to imagine. If Iran is attacked you can expect a very harsh response by the Shia community around the world and Iran will come out scratching and clawing like a big tiger. The US would then be eventually stuck in another unwinnable war and the damage to its economy would be even more severe than it is now. If you think the US economy is bad now, just imagine what would happen if they attacked Iran. And that would also lead to Moqtada Al-Sadr the most powerful Shiite politician in Iraq getting involved in the resistance to US forces. Iraq which is a majority Shiite nation would not welcome an attack on Iran by the US or Israel.

It seems that neither side in this scenario wants to communicate with each other but the United States cannot continue on the path that it is currently on. It is clear that some of the Iranian officials do not want to have relations with the United States but President Obama should at least try to have a dialogue with them. If you have a problem with somebody, the best answer is to try and resolve that problem with that person because if you don’t talk to them, there is no chance of ever resolving your problem. But if you at least attempt to have a dialogue, then there might be a chance. There is no guarantee that Iran will listen if the US tries to talk to them but my point is the United States should at least try to communicate with them. Relations between these two countries have been strained for far too long. Most other countries in the world currently have relations with Iran so there is no reason why the United States and Iran cannot have relations with each other. Yes, the United States does support Israel but there is no justification for the US to continue to treat Iran like an enemy because this treatment has only taken the United States into a position where it is considered to be the aggressor.

The United States government also does things it should not do. If the United States is so focused on human rights and peace, this is the time that they can show it.

The United States should act as a peacemaker in the world by adopting a foreign policy of peace and free trade with every nation as Thomas Jefferson suggested. The problem is that the United States does not follow his words of wisdom and as long as they don’t do this they will never feel safe and secure. It is time for the United States to stop all of this political theater and get down to the business of at least trying to have dialogue with Iran. If it is not successful, then at least the US can feel good that it at least tried to do this. President Obama said that he would talk to Iran but so far he has not done so. It is time for him to deliver on his word. It is far better for the United States to talk to Iran’s leaders rather than using a war of words to treat them like demons. America cannot afford to start more wars. Former President Mohammad Khatami in an interview in 2009 mentioned that he believes that while having Obama as President of the United States is a change he said that he believes that America should stop acting like it is a big brother.

Khatami is basically trying to say that America’s foreign policy with other countries needs to change. The US would do well to heed his advice. But such a move by the United States is extremely unlikely. The US has had a long standing relationship with Israel and that is one of the major reasons why they will continue to label Iran as the enemy because the current Iranian regime does not view Israel very favorably.

Yes, Iran’s current regime is far from perfect but the United States government is corrupt too. It is time for both sides to have honest, meaningful dialogue with each other. The US will be better off by trying to do this. The United States has no business to say that Iran is guilty of human right violations because the United States has been responsible for waterboarding, torture and the establishment of Guantanamo Bay in Cuba which is a notorious prison where in some cases the people there has been mistreated. These actions prove that the United States is not acting like a democratic country. You can call yourself a democratic country but that does not make you one. If the United States is a democratic country it should act like one by following the principles set up in the Constitution. It is time for the United States to stop this political game playing and instead talk to the Iranians.

The United States may have no choice but to be comfortable with a regime having nuclear technology. No amount of threats or coercion will prevent Iran from enriching uranium. This hard line approach by the United States will make it more likely that Iran will develop nuclear technology. The only wise solution to this dispute is for the US to have a dialogue with Iran.