At the other end of the spectrum, stop talking about Iran?
But the scenario which we don’t seem to consider, and which appears more plausible everyday, will be that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s victory will be confirmed, and he will remain as president for four more years.
If – when – that happens, the simplistic ‘Mousavi good, Ahmadinejad bad’ dichotomy could translate into unprecedented anti-Iranian hostility, which the current geopolitical climate simply cannot handle.
President Obama was elected on a platform of dialogue and reconciliation; the ‘Iran’ chapter of his strategy remains the most explicitly cautious, unsurprising given the strength of the –largely republican – anti-Iran current within his own Congress and the hostility displayed towards Iran by West Jerusalem. An American popular backlash could tip the balance towards the retraction of an amenable Iran policy back into the confrontation zone.
Alright, I can’t agree with this. In this day and age, international engagement over important regional issues (particularly in volatile Middle East) is key. The world is everyone’s responsibility. However, I do think that we jump in the mix with little to no thought on what we’re supporting (like I’m doing now!). I guess the suggestion here is inform yourself. Reach out beyond the usual boundaries of news and talk to real people. On that note, he does have a point: can Obama engage in talks with an ‘illegal’ Iran?