Let's bomb, bomb, bomb Iran for Bibi!

Some right wing twit named Joshua Muravchik wants the U.S. to attack Iran, right now, no negotiations, none of this squishy jawing with other peoples, just blow 'em to bits. He liked the Iraq war too; in fact, he seems never to have met an aggressive U.S. war he didn't like. I hope the Washington Post is enjoying the infamy it is acquiring by publishing this tripe.

I actually read the thing. Muravchik's claim is that Iranians aren't human. They are governed by what he calls "ideology," meaning by that they are incapable of wanting the best for themselves and their children. Why they'd rather die for their "ideology" than negotiate for peace! Therefore we must kill them.

There is a country in the Middle Eastern neighborhood whose leaders too often sound like that, refusing to negotiate for peace (begins with "I" and ends with "L," not " Q" or "N"); Muravchik thinks those leaders' "ideological" blinders are just hunky dory.

What no one seems willing to point out about U.S. relations with Iran is that Iranians make a good case that we started the hostilities. We overthrew the most democratic government they ever had, more or less by giving an adventurous CIA agent his head -- or perhaps to please some oil companies. That government was succeeded by a vicious tyrant whom we propped up for reasons of geopolitics. When they got around to overthrowing the tyrant, we invited him into our country. (We used to offer retirement to used dictators; now they are usually offed, see also Saddam Hussein.) Then some Iranian hotheads got pissed off and seized our embassy and its people. They then played footsie with a right wing Republican running for office (Saint Ronnie R.) and we got the hostages back. Then we supplied both sides in their war with Iraq, pleased to fuel a mass slaughter on a par with World War I. 

So now we must hate Iran forever? Perhaps only because we’ve behaved atrociously toward an ancient people who carry dim but vital memories of ancient empire and don't like to be humiliated.

At present, we're more or less on the same side with Iran, trying to tamp down ISIS.This is a tricky and unstable tactical coincidence, but the Iranians have an advantage we don't in that part of the world: that they are there and we aren't. Yet.

Oh yes -- we are required to bomb Iran because some Israelis (not all -- including for example Israeli intelligence leaders) fear Iran. Projection, maybe? Israel is the strongest military power in the area with some 200 nukes. It can take care of itself!

The United States should be looking out for U.S. interests, not Israeli ones. The interests of everyone in the world (except maybe the military/industrial complex) are served by peace, not war. That should be the object of U.S. power, not Mr. Muravchik's fantasies.