U.S.: Unrest in Iran opens window for immediate sanctions

You hear/read news, the Gazans feel the heavy hand of Hamas, but the resentment is there, just a matter of time and it will be stronger than the fear of being thrown from the 4th floor of a buiding in Gaza..............

It is generally assumed that Israel has impeded Iranianisn progress in their nuclear weapons pogramme for the last 15 years, otherwise, there would already be an Iranian bomb. That's one of the reasons for the "unexpected difficulties" the Iranian regime faces. So, do you really think that Israel and the US don't know at least most of the sites? And who, in 2010, needs 200,000 troops to search? And why would anyone expect from the Germans to do something other than teaching Afghan policemen to salute properly, or request American air coverage for feeling threatened, resulting in the death of 140 civilians? And why does everyone think he or she knows how the Iranian people would "react" when the protestors clearly asked for help in regime change? Maybe this is just finding conscience soothing excuses to do nothing (but business) with Iran?

what you wrote does not match reality, but reflects a preconceived notion, which is a bit condescending. For weeks Iranian students carry around signs during demonstrations reading: "Obama, you are either with us, or the regime". Humiliation of the regime will only help the Iranian patriots.

that what the world believe, and that is the main reason regarding the present international pressure on the jewish state ! there are two ways israel must take regarding this danger; either appeasement or defends its right to exist ! there is no third way. appeasement or surrender & the first road will ends in 'erasing israel from the map';as they keep telling us . Horrible to imagine & must make it not happens. israel defending itself to exist is a hard road to follow ! a decision the world is imposing on israel to follow, with all its dangers. Israel must not continue to exist just because of the weakness of the palestinians. Israel can exist only through the unity of its people & the determination of the diaspora jews. The country that managed to stay alive and progress for much over a half century, in spite of all odds, must believe in itself to win the battle of its survival ! difficult times ahead; but when was the time that wasn't difficult to israel ??

i was not posting in 2003. yes, we are all tired of war. salam/shalom

Weren't you the one saying those exact words about Iraq back in 2003? The world is tired of war and your words of war, especially those of us in the Middle East. Salam/Shalom (one day).

the west bank has nothing whatever to do with iran, nor iran with the west bank. iran is and has been a terror state for over thirty years. iran has been exporting its shia revolution for decades. indeed, iran has been killing and kidnapping americans and other westerners for much longer than their sunni counterpart. iran is without doubt a very serious threat to the region and to world peace. it is well known that iran has already infiltrated south america. iran will continue its terror expension as long as this terror regime exists and as long as it has oil revenues. the threat of nuclear proliferation from iran is very real. the a.q. khan affair is one of the most devestating intelligence and policy failures of the post war period.

Like Israel & Germany, the US is not prepared for a third MidEast war, just now. And the Intel is that the Revolutionary Guards are the ones profiting from the oil business. They are also the ones in charge of most everything, including any weapons program the country might have. The US might or might not know where all the secret sites are. Israel doesn't and isn't willing to put 100,000 to 200,000 troops on the ground to search. Neither is Germany or any country in the EU. Canada's tied up in Afghanistan. Aside from war, what do you suggest that won't get Mousavi to rally the opposition to the government? Why isn't Israel or the EU already doing it?

iran is enjoined from having nuclear weapons by the nuclear non-proliferation treaty of which it is a signatory. iran is also under mandate by the un security council to refrain from nuclear enrichement as well as from producing ballistic missiles. iran has already been sanctioned three times by the security council for its secret and illegal nuclear weapons program.

what a quaint idea. does the obama administration really think that people who are in charge of most of the economy, including revenues from oil exports, and who are in charge of the nuclear/ballistic missile production can be cowed with sanctions?

As a firm believer in the Right of anyone to keep and bear arms I think this tempest in a teapot over Iran having a few firecrackers is way overblown. If they were to use them in an offensive capacity then I would support the use of retalitory measures to bring them to their senses. They should be held to the same standards that has kept the peace between nuclear armed nations for the last 50 or 60 years. If something happens they get the blame and suffer the consequences. On the other hand, the Iranians have every right to pursue the aquisition of nuclear weapons for purely defensive measures. If they were faced with an overwhelming invasion force and decided that a nuclear option was the only way to defend themselves, well, as long as it was on their own soil, more power to them.

The US outed one site that was nearly a decade old that the Israeli and US press didn't know about. Israel and its gov were outraged. Where are all the secret sites, the ones where something is actually going on? The Qum site turned out to be an empty hole in the ground. Any attack will push the population to the government, just as one on Israel or the US or Canada would. You don't know if the secret sites are in population areas or not. How would Canada react to an attack somewhere in the NW Territories? Or somewhere in North Alberta? I'd bet even the Quebecois would become tighter with your government. Except maybe for Cheney and DeMint, even US Republicans would rally to Obama if the US was successfully attacked. Iranians are no different. Mousavi would rally the opposition to the gov Mullahs.

When people are attacked from outside they rally round the flag. The Iranians may be unhappy about their regime, but they are also quite patriotic. Remember: The closing off of Gaza did not result in turning the Gazans against Hamas either. Imposing sanctions now is the most stupid thing the Obama administration could do.

Many of them are far removed from civilian areas. The issue you raise is a red herring.

One thing the US has learned in Iraq and in Afghanistan is that civilians resent being bombed. They tend to coalesce around those opposed to those bombing them, even when it is not in their long term interest. Some CIA contractors haven't yet learned this. But eventually they will. The US only has the resources to bomb Iran and coalesce the opposition around the government. Hence it is no military option. If Israel really wants a war, it must sacrifice something for that war. Maybe the West Bank? One other thing the US learned is that all the wishing in the world doesn't get you what you want, every time. Sometimes you have to pay for it at a price somebody else sets. The US knew about Qum for almost a decade. But even US satellites haven't seen everything.

UAV and EMP