March 2008 Postcard

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DEAR SENATOR:

I urge you to take U.S. foreign policy regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran in a new direction. As they did with Iraq, President George W. Bush and his administration have exaggerated and distorted the supposed “immediate threat” posed by Iran. The 2007 declassification of the National Intelligence Agency’s (NIA) 2003 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) revealed that Iran’s plans for nuclear development do not extend to an active weapons program. Our president has known this for years.

This past Jan. 6, the U.S. Navy reported being “harassed” and “threatened” by Iranian boats in the Strait of Hormuz. Subsequent information cast doubt on the accuracy of those reports. Please do not take illegitimate action against Iran without due cause. As a taxpayer I support programs to open communications between Iran and the U.S., not another rash military intervention.

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Protesters on Oct. 27 in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo By Samir Twair).

U.S. troops already are over-extended in Afghanistan and Iraq. Nonetheless President George W. Bush has set his sights on Iran. In his 2002 State of the Union Address he labeled the Islamic Republic of Iran part of an “Axis of Evil,” and he has used inflammatory rhetoric ever since to paint a frightening picture of Iran. Little by little, the paint is peeling back to reveal a more accurate picture. Iranians are not anti-American Islamic fundamentalists or terrorists.

Iran and the U.S. have an emotional legacy, dating back to the 1953 CIA-led ousting of elected nationalist Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh and the reinstallation of the pro-Western Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution and the ensuing U.S. hostage crisis ended our turbulent relationship. It’s time to use diplomacy to re-open doors, and dialogue to avert another disasterous war.