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Deja vu — Judith Apter Klinghoffer

Judith Apter Klinghoffer

ON IRANIAN NEGOTIATORS AND BLOGGERS

A very reliable Iranian friend writes:

I just found out that NITV is no longer on air... and that was the only one TV station in the US that concerned Mullahs .... this coincides with having Iranian diplomats in town ...is there any connection.???

Are we negotiating? We may be. If so, Bush is playing hardball. He, again, refused to take the use of tactical nuclear weapons off the table.

To Tom Friedman's and Sy Hersh's frustration and my delight, Bush continues to believe in preemption. Tom Friedman's hatred of Bush completely undermines his judgment. Not only does he argue that the US has the means to change the behavior of the Iranian Messianic Theocrats but this is the way he wishes to deter them:

A short diplomatic note to Iran's mullahs will suffice: "Gentlemen, should you ever use a nuclear device, or dispense one to terrorists, we will destroy every one of your nuclear sites with tactical nuclear weapons. If there is any part of this sentence you don't understand, please contact us. Thank you."

Apparently, it has never occurred to Tom, that understanding is not the problem. Belief in the coming of the 12th Imam is. But lack of common sense is one of the reasons that as Bruce Kuklick so persuasively argues in Tuesday's FT, "politicians outrank scholars and that the military has a constitutional obligation to keep silent and take orders." Unfortunately, his op-ed is not online. But you can read the gist of his argument in the Daily Pennsylvanian.

My friend went on expressing her frustration by the ease with which Iranians, especially, bloggers, who she believes are enjoying the benefits of living in the West but do not support its struggle. I understand her perfectly though I am not surprised. We all know that the Yale Taliban is far from unique. Tom Friedman is security vigilante compared to the diplomats who dispense American visas. Still, I understand my friends speculation has upset the persons mentioned. If so, I am sorry. Moreover, since they contested the accuracy of her speculation, I removed it from the posting.

To be honest, I suspect I published her email because it responded to a painful experience I rarely mention and have not written about. It has to do with an Iranian family with which I was very close for 35 years. Indeed, when they escaped the Mullahs, they stayed with us until they got on their feet. I knew their son since he was 6. He grew up in the US and is living here now married to an American woman and working for a top investment firm.

Hence, I was stunned when in 2003 he said to told us at a dinner party: "If you touch Iran, I will go there and fight you."

Posted on Wednesday, April 19, 2006 at 1:07 PM | Comments (164) | Return

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