As History Repeats Itself (II)

Obama’s main “henchmen,” Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, who have emphasized that the Iranian leaders “were sowing the seeds of their own destruction,” predictably support the president’s attitude in this matter. Israel, who has vowed to use all possible measures to prevent Iran from being able to acquire nuclear weapons, is increasing its threats of war against the allies of Iran, the Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Palestinian movement of Hamas. Additionally, the “trash the peace prize” winner, Shimon Peres, has proclaimed, “we must recruit the entire world to fight Ahmadinejad.”

The similarities to the prelude of the invasion of Iraq are unmistakable. As in 2002-2003, the U.S. spread the rumor that a dictatorial state in the Middle East was secretly developing weapons of mass destruction, defying the resolutions of the United Nations, preventing inspections, threatening its neighbors, and supporting terrorism. As in the case of Iraq, no evidence has been provided to back up these accusations, although the mainstream media regularly broadcasts false leaks about secret programs. Recently, a former CIA official reported American intelligence services had given credence to some documents, which were completely fabricated and published in the Times, purporting to demonstrate that Iran was planning to test a “neutron trigger” for an atomic weapon. This maneuver is similar to the so-called attempts by Iraq to purchase uranium in Niger.

In case anyone has not yet grasped the parallel, Tony Blair is also guilty of repeating history. Far from showing remorse for the carnage he helped to unleash on the Iraqi people, the former Prime Minister has been allowed to transform what should have been a blow his political career into a platform for promoting a war against Iran. Yet, this blackbird of misfortune amply deserves to be prosecuted for war crimes. He isn’t the only one pushing for such a war. Another neo-conservative from the Bush era, Daniel Pipes, claimed the only way for Obama to save his presidency was “to bomb Iran” and to destroy “the nuclear weapons capacity” of that country, which would be slightly embarrassing for the United States as a ground occupier amid the victims.

The reality is that such an attack would potentially be even more devastating than the aggression against Iraq. Iran has the capacity to implement armed reprisals, both directly and indirectly, through its allies. Such action would not only set the region ablaze, but also block 20 percent of the world’s oil supplies that pass through the Straits of Hormuz. So, would the world accept being duped once more, or would it react by putting pressure on these insane rulers who, for vile interests, despise the lives of millions of innocents?