Soob

I once asked in regard to Iran's President "why the hell does anyone place any credence or lever any political viewpoint based on Iran's elections?" The answer (you'll have to scroll a bit) was right in line with the following WAPO article:

The struggle there is not just between reactionaries and reformers, conservatives and liberals, but fundamentally between the state and society. A subtle means of diminishing the state and empowering the society is, in the end, the best manner of promoting not only democracy but also nuclear disarmament.

I've also railed against the prospect of taking military action in regard to Iran's nuclear program, explored possible fractious outcomes and basically put forth a frothing resistance to fucking up the world economy and any hope for middle eastern stability in opposing any military strike against Iran, be it Israeli or American.

What's refreshing is the piece published in the Washington Post regarding an actual realistic solution to the Iranian proliferation conundrum. Ignoring the idealistic saber rattling, Nasr and Takeyh actually capture a believable and possible resolution;

Toss aside the vinegar and slather on the honey:

Paradoxically, to liberalize the theocratic state, the United States would do better to shelve its containment strategy and embark on a policy of unconditional dialogue and sanctions relief. A reduced American threat would deprive the hard-liners of the conflict they need to justify their concentration of power. In the meantime, as Iran became assimilated into the global economy, the regime's influence would inevitably yield to the private sector, with its demands for accountability and reform.

Much in the same fashion that President Clinton pushed China's most favored nation status we could undermine the "radical" foundation of Iran's governance. By introducing Iran to the global economy we both recognize their unequivocal sovereignty and marginalize or force the religious overlords to "modernize" for their own sake. By effectively building up Iran's global economic reality we also insure their demise should they devolve to expansionist (Shia Iraq) or religious (Israel) aggression. In effect, the more economically entwined a nation becomes globally the more unrealistic or simply impossible war against another state of equivocal status becomes.

Or we could pound them with conventional or even light nukes and really wobble the global economy...