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http://www.politico.com/story/2017/04/24/obama-iran-nuclear-deal-prisoner-release-236966
When President Barack Obama announced the "one-time gesture" of releasing Iranian-born prisoners who "were not charged with terrorism or any violent offenses" last year, his administration presented the move as a modest trade-off for the greater good of the Iran nuclear agreement and Tehran's pledge to free five Americans.
[...] But Obama, the senior official and other administration representatives weren't telling the whole story on Jan. 17, 2016, in their highly choreographed rollout of the prisoner swap and simultaneous implementation of the six-party nuclear deal, according to a POLITICO investigation.
[...] The biggest fish, though, was Seyed Abolfazl Shahab Jamili, who had been charged with being part of a conspiracy that from 2005 to 2012 procured thousands of parts with nuclear applications for Iran via China. That included hundreds of U.S.-made sensors for the uranium enrichment centrifuges in Iran whose progress had prompted the nuclear deal talks in the first place.
When federal prosecutors and agents learned the true extent of the releases, many were shocked and angry. [...] Through action in some cases and inaction in others, the White House derailed its own much-touted National Counterproliferation Initiative at a time when it was making unprecedented headway in thwarting Iran's proliferation networks. In addition, the POLITICO investigation found that Justice and State Department officials denied or delayed requests from prosecutors and agents to lure some key Iranian fugitives to friendly countries so they could be arrested. Similarly, Justice and State, at times in consultation with the White House, slowed down efforts to extradite some suspects already in custody overseas, according to current and former officials and others involved in the counterproliferation effort.
And as far back as the fall of 2014, Obama administration officials began slow-walking some significant investigations and prosecutions of Iranian procurement networks operating in the U.S. These previously undisclosed findings are based on interviews with key participants at all levels of government and an extensive review of court records and other documents. "Clearly, there was an embargo on any Iranian cases," according to the former federal supervisor. "Of course it pissed people off, but it's more significant that these guys were freed, and that people were killed because of the actions of one of them," the supervisor added, in reference to [Amin] Ravan and the IED network.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Sulla on Tuesday April 25 2017, @04:24PM (22 children)
Maybe I'm not a boomer so I can't understand, but I do not see a problem with Iran having the bomb. Right now Iran is a constrictor, they do not look all that powerful but when push comes to shove they will wear you down. Let them become a rattlesnake and they are less likely to be tread on. A nuclear Iran would be forced into the role of fighting terror because any randoms with a bomb will be blamed on Iran
regardless of whether or not they supplied it. Israel will be forced to accept a reality where MAD now includes them. Both powers would be put in check and it puts Israel and Iran at each other instead of being proxied between the US and Russia.
Iran is not some mad dog like NK is. Achmawhaterdijad was like Trump is now, a lot of smoke but not a lot of fire. They are smart enough to know what happens if they go too far, and they are unlikely to push it to that extent. An Iran that is forced to reign in terror will be a stabilizing force in the middle east. Will Iran support Syria attacking Israel if it could end in MAD? Will Israel attack Syria knowing it will end in MAD?
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 25 2017, @04:44PM (2 children)
Regional proliferation is perhaps the biggest concern. If they build them, Saudi Arabia has suggested they'll also build to counter. Their neighbors then may want to join the club to protect themselves.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Ethanol-fueled on Tuesday April 25 2017, @07:02PM (1 child)
Then we stomp their fucking guts out.
Iran won't use nukes, they're actually pretty civilized. Who we should be worried about, is Pakistan. Those treacherous pieces of shit are even more violent and inbred than the Saudis.
Of course, I have the perfect solution to this problem.
* raises index finger, tilts chin downward, lowers index finger, tilts chin upward * To nuke the entire Middle-East, including Israel.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 26 2017, @07:04AM
Funny, that's the same thing my car mechanic says. When things are more complicated than put car on blocks, change oil, he gets agitated. His geopoliitical solution to the middle east is exactly what you said. Great minds etc.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday April 25 2017, @04:53PM (11 children)
Not necessarily too young but definitely too ill-informed about middle-eastern politics. If Iran gets The Bomb, they will use it. Most likely on Israel. Israel knows this and will not under any circumstances allow a nuclear Iran. The two attitudes reinforce each other into a feedback loop all but guaranteeing that is the only way things can turn out.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by justinb_76 on Tuesday April 25 2017, @05:46PM
If Iran gets The Bomb, they will use it. Most likely on Israel.
and nothing of value would be lost - call me antisemitic all you want, wouldn't be the first time and probably won't be the last...
(Score: 2, Disagree) by digitalaudiorock on Tuesday April 25 2017, @06:19PM (4 children)
Right...because we all know that the entire country is such a bunch of crazed jihadists that they're fine with having their entire country immediately turned into a piece of glass right??
This is the biggest crock of bullshit propaganda going on the Iran issue. Nuclear deterrents will work with Iran just as they have with everyone else since WWII.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday April 25 2017, @08:45PM (2 children)
Their leaders speak crazed jihadi like a boss. Nobody's fault but their own if they're believed.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 25 2017, @10:01PM (1 child)
McCain and Hillary have made similar threats back to them. Remember John's little song? USA are hypocrites.
(Score: 2, Troll) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday April 25 2017, @10:52PM
You obviously do not even understand what you're talking about. Hypocrisy would be threatening to destroy them simply because we believed them to be sub-human scum like they believe of the Jews. Promising to destroy them if they attack or even seriously threaten an ally is nothing even remotely approaching the same thing.
One is xenophobic, genocidal madness.
The other is defense of a friend from xenophobic, genocidal maniacs.
Learn to think.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 26 2017, @12:47AM
http://www.schlockmercenary.com/2017-04-25 [schlockmercenary.com]
Says it all, really. MAD works until one party believes that destroying both sides is an improvement.
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Tuesday April 25 2017, @07:05PM (1 child)
This is doubtful, because to launch is to ensure their own destruction. I am an authority on these matters because I played Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday April 25 2017, @08:44PM
I bow to your diplomatic experience then.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday April 25 2017, @11:49PM (2 children)
If Iran gets The Bomb, they will use it.
I have to disagree. Iran simply doesn't care that much about Israel in the first place. OTOH, Saudi Arabia exerts considerable control over Iran's ability to generate income from its oil resources and controls vastly more oil reserves (both directly and through its allies, Kuwait, UAE, Yemen, and Jordan) and whose principle defender is the US. Nuclear weapons will help with that foe even if they are never used on the battlefield.
My real concern about Iran and Israel is the same as Pakistan and India. The two countries aren't far apart. If there are any tensions that could lead to a nuclear war, then that makes war more likely than the US/USSR rivalry which were between countries separated by thousands of miles. They have very little time to determine whether a nuclear attack alert is real or not. That means a higher chance of accidentally starting a nuclear war through error.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Wednesday April 26 2017, @12:36AM (1 child)
US and USSR/Russia share direct borders in Alaska - Siberia ie Bering Strait. The nearest land (two ice lands) are only 3.8 km apart.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday April 26 2017, @01:49PM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 25 2017, @04:53PM
Saudi Arabia has said that they would get the bomb if Iran does. It's possible that Saudi Arabia's government may fall, leaving the bomb in the hands of somebody worse.
Next up might be Egypt (would need to accept loss of US aid) or, after shit gets repaired, possibly Iraq. Each time a country gets the bomb, their enemies become more inclined to do likewise. Do we really want this spreading across the world?
It's important to look beyond the current government. Governments change. Sometimes invasions are fast, with nuclear delivery mechanisms unable to work.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by fnj on Tuesday April 25 2017, @05:03PM
Those who fail to inform themselves of and recognize evil are simple dupes at best. The power structure in Iran is as nuts, around the bend, and warped with one track hatred as that in North Korea. And in both cases the masses are completely and utterly brainwashed. Pretty much identical to what happened in Nazi Germany and imperial Japan. In none of the cases do I hate the PEOPLE per se, but in all the cases they have sadly come to represent an implacable enemy driven by mindless hate.
Inform yourself of Ahmadinejad's exposition of his aims in his own words. Pay particular attention to the invective he spews for domestic consumption, not just what goes out diplomatically. He believes Israel should be eradicated from the face of the earth, and yearns for the day he might achieve the capability to do so.
MAD only works when all sides actually fear destruction. It doesn't work against raving lunatic Hitlers.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by jmorris on Tuesday April 25 2017, @05:32PM (4 children)
You are a fool who buys into the insane notion that 'they are people just like us', that diversity doesn't really exist since everybody is exactly alike, you aren't religious and can't imagine that anyone else in $current_year -really- believes any of those old fairy tales.
Well they aren't like you, they don't think like you and they do believe they are commanded by Allah to force you to submit. Giving them atom bombs will get one of two scenarios.
1. The 'good' scenario, where there are just enough sane leaders in Iran to avoid the second scenario, is they extend the shield of their atom bombs over every Jihadi who swears allegiance and lets them operate without fear of open attack by nation states, openly operate camps, own territory, etc. Their actual armies can also operate openly to conquer their enemies.
For a recent example, look to Crimea, Russia is a tattered third rate power who Europe could easily muster a conventional army to smash to bits, even without the US, if they got out of hand. But Russia has the bomb so a military response was and is off the table. Putin and Russia are sane, so MAD does work to keep them within certain bounds since we too have the bomb. If Iran stayed within those same bounds, the benefit gained by having a few nukes would be worth many additional divisions.
2. The 'bad' scenario. They really are waiting for the Hidden Imam to come up out of that well and all that crazy crap. They believe it is their duty to bathe the world in fire and blood to prepare the way for the Mahdi. Drop a dozen attached to even short range rockets, preferably cruise missles, hope one makes it through Iron Dome. The Jews respond and drop their fusion bombs in response. Within a day they probably get their wish as everybody else gets dragged into the festivities.
And remember, once it is clear Iran is going to be permitted a nuke, -everybody- in the region will be arming up in response. How can we permit Iran a bomb and deny Saudi Arabia? Obama would, aid any foe, backstab any friend, but Trump ain't going to prevent it. Expect at least a half dozen powers in the region with nukes.
(Score: 2, Disagree) by https on Tuesday April 25 2017, @08:16PM (2 children)
Does telling lies about a religion make you feel better about...anything? There's more than enough fodder to put the smackdown on Islam without making shit up.
Offended and laughing about it.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday April 25 2017, @08:33PM (1 child)
He's not wrong if he's talking about the Wahhabis, who are Islam's version of the US's Christian Reconstructionists. And like our Theonomists, they are also in charge.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 26 2017, @12:51AM
World war 3, here we come..
or has it already started?
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 25 2017, @11:45PM
[begin encoded message] SJW Special Task Force, Rouge Une, jmorris Squad: status report. jmorris lies sleeping dreaming of Armaggedon. We suspect emissions. Or at least leakage. Request crew replacements, Not everyone can be exposed to this much crazy for such a long period of time. jmorris Squad out. [end encoded message]