Associated Press: “President Barack Obama suggested that Iran may have some right to nuclear energy”
Pew Research: “No Decline in Belief That Obama is a Muslim”
Nice timing! “[giving] Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a huge victory just ten days before the Iranian election.”
If a terrorist tells you he needs the ammonia nitrate for fertilizer, do you believe him?
Mr President, these are not games you are playing.
Obama = narcistic ass
Another Obamassiah election promise tossed under that bus.
“correctly identify Obama as a Christian” – who decideds what’s correct and what’s not?
What a dishonest bullsh*t juxtaposition.
No, it isn’t. Especially when Obama HIMSELF said he’s “side with the Muslims” if it came down to it. And this was after his election, in one of his first interviews as president.
And we’re not supposed to raise an eyebrow at this?
More over, his vow to bankrupt the coal industry but not even remotely hint at building up nuclear power here in the US smacks of hypocrisy (and that’s not even the right word). So apparently, it’s cool with him if Tehran residents have power and heat, but not the Wisconsin family come January.
Well lets see.
Iran has a right to nuclear energy. Not nuclear bombs. Nuclear energy. Huge difference (for the scientifically-inclined anyway). On what grounds do they not have a right to it? Technically they are signatories to the NPT. As such they have as much right to nuclear energy as Jamaica, Senegal or Papua New Guinea. Admitting that is hardly shocking.
Do they have a right to obtain nuclear weapons? Not at all.
And now half a dozen geniuses will rush to let me know that nuclear energy is followed by nuclear bombs. Why yes, it is. Problem is, there seems to be a general consensus that nuclear energy isnt so bad. Bush just gave a whole list of rights to India, despite India’s refusal to sign the Non Proliferation Treaty, or even a test ban treaty. In simpler words, having nuclear energy is allowed. It hasn;t been banned yet, even if it can result in nuclear weapons.
On the issue of Obama being a Muslim, its hardly a surprise that the number of Republicans who think he is a muslim is double that of Democrats. No one has ever accused the Republican grassroots of being well-informed. And yes, when I say grassroots, I am talking about average (or plumber) Joe. I am not referring to the Republican leadership, which is as smart as any other, and as capable of making useful idiots out of uninformed people as the Democrat leadership.
Republican hacks think Obama is Muslim. In other news, the sun still rises in the east. Earth-shaking stuff, this. I blame Fox for not telling them any better. Who else can I blame? Its not like they watch the evil MSM.
this won’t have a happy ending….
“More over, his vow to bankrupt the coal industry but not even remotely hint at building up nuclear power here in the US smacks of hypocrisy (and that’s not even the right word). So apparently, it’s cool with him if Tehran residents have power and heat, but not the Wisconsin family come January.”
Do you want a nuclear power plant in your backyard? Because the biggest opponents of nuclear power in the US are generally Not In My Backyard types. Go after them, will you? (Or at least look into the issue before assigning blame)
Obama is not a muslim. That’s just silly.
He is an intelligent pompous charismatic egomaniac with no internal convictions and no real respect for the history of the West and of the United States and how we came to be where we are in the past 500 years.
He has not had any real struggle against adversity in life, and had no understanding of history except what he was told to think in his history courses (if he even took any).
He has no goal in his presidency except to advance his name in the history books. And he will succeed. He will go down as the man who presided over the greatest decline of the West and of the USA – socially, politically, an economically.
uh huh: I’d rather have a nuclear power plant in my back yard then dozens of other facilities that don’t under go the same scrutiny. (Like a gas storage facility in Toronto perhpas?)
Nuclear typically doesn’t suffer from NIMBY types rather it suffers from NIABY (not in ANY back yard) types. The communities around nuclear stations understand they bring high paying long term jobs, and if it wasn’t for the high security you would never know it was a nuclear reactor vs any other industrial installation .
The idea that Iran needs/wants nuclear for purely peaceful means is pretty obtuse.
A nation that: is hot and sunny (solar for the greens out there), full of cheap oil and gas and calls for the destruction of a nearby nation. But of course their only desire is cheaper AC for the masses.
I think we may as well face the fact that the radical countries are going to get the ultimate weapon. Iran will get one like North Korea, Cities will be nuked in the future. The leftards are willing to let it happen. willing… they probably are hoping for it. The only question is why are they so willing to sponsor our enemy’s. As a western “infidel” I would rather be friends with them, and go touring over there but for some reason we are headed towards some sort of horrible destiny. As a aside, my spell checker doesn’t like the word leftard. New word for Websters.
Obama is trying to smokescreen his spineless position on Iran by lip-synching Ahmadinnerjacket’s bald face lie that this is all about nuclear energy only.
Anyone here qualified care to comment on whether homemade enriched uranium is the most efficient use of time and money if the object is nuclear energy only?
Israel is now alone and facing an existential threat. As xiat above notes, this isn’t going to end well.
Actually, Iran has every right to develop both nuclear energy and nuclear bombs if it so wishes.
It’s a sovereign state.
duffman
“Nuclear typically doesn’t suffer from NIMBY types rather it suffers from NIABY (not in ANY back yard) types. The communities around nuclear stations understand they bring high paying long term jobs, and if it wasn’t for the high security you would never know it was a nuclear reactor vs any other industrial installation .”
You must be the only person in the world who believes NIABY types have more influence than NIMBY types. NIMBY types are much more effective. And they span all party lines. Think of it as reverse-pork barreling. And yes, it does happen.
“The idea that Iran needs/wants nuclear for purely peaceful means is pretty obtuse.
A nation that: is hot and sunny (solar for the greens out there), full of cheap oil and gas and calls for the destruction of a nearby nation. But of course their only desire is cheaper AC for the masses.”
Iran’s economy is tanking. Oil reserves are falling rapidly. Gas has become the most lucrative source of hard cash. They want to sell the gas to energy hungry India, rather than lose it on Iranian power needs. Its very simple economics. Nuclear fuel is cheaper. And with India’s gas needs set to decrease over time (through nuclear power – Bush pact etc), the Iranians want to cash in on it and China as much as they can. But this is not what you are here to hear, so lets just let it slip.
The Israel angle, while very attention-grabbing, is a red herring. Israel is supplying India with all kinds of defence technology. They pretty much have a full blow military alliance. And Iran is supplying gas to India. And India has strong political ties with Iran. In fact the muslim Pakistanis are convinced that India and Iran have a military alliance. Even as Israel equips Indian aircraft and naval ship. Wierd, eh?
Iran’s always had a policy of externalization. Like ‘wag the dog’. When theres disharmony inside, they try to unite the country by focusing on an outside threat. Israel just fits the billing. Will they attack Israel? Well let me put it this way. Most of the world isn’t half as worried about Iran as it is about North Korea. Want to know why? Because Iran has been pretty damn rational in the practice of its foreign policy. Sure the rhetoric is kooky, but they’re hardly erratic.
“”correctly identify Obama as a Christian” – who decideds what’s correct and what’s not?”
Not who, but what, it’s reality. You should introduce yourself.
(Iran’s) Oil reserves are falling rapidly.
Better have a look at this:
http://www.upi.com/Energy_Resources/2009/05/12/Iran-oil-reserves-increase-officials-say/UPI-47581242143037/
They want to sell the gas to energy hungry India, rather than lose it on Iranian power needs.
Natural gas is waaaaay cheaper than nuclear. It would be insane to sell a cheap form of energy and use the proceeds to replace it with a more expensive form.
If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it’s a duck. Welcome to reality, joe. You misspelled ‘balony’.
Who but a Mohammedan would know to choose this Thursday for his address?
Amir Taheri, Barack Obama is blind to his blunders over Islam
Obama has aroused more curiosity in the Middle East than any previous US leader, partly because of his Arabic-Islamic first and middle names. The choice of the date for Obama’s address indicates his attention to detail. It coincides with the anniversary of the start of the first battle between Islam, under Prophet Muhammad, and Christendom in the shape of a Byzantine expeditionary force in AD629. The “address to Islam” also marks the 30th anniversary of Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini’s demise and the appointment of Ali Khamenei as the new “Supreme Guide of the Islamic ummah”. More importantly, it also coincides with the rebuilding of the Ka’abah, the stone at the heart of Mecca, which had been destroyed in a Muslim civil war…
…but then, he has plenty of Islamist advisors to help him out:
Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser, Obama Administration Stacking the Deck with Islamists
“Natural gas is waaaaay cheaper than nuclear. It would be insane to sell a cheap form of energy and use the proceeds to replace it with a more expensive form.” – some oblivious tool
Tell that to the Alberta government which has rather aggressive plans to develop nuclear power as a source of energy. As well, Iran has a vital need for foreign currency which would be served by developing nuclear energy and exporting a higher proportion of oil and its derivatives.
joe,
There’s some proposals floating around from some people inside and outside of Alberta for a nuker. It’s hardly “aggressive”.
Also, Iran is exporting excess hydrocarbons like every other petroleum exporting country. But they are hardly going to short themselves and build nukers to backfill the shortage. It would be economically nuts. Which was my original point.
“NIABY (not in ANY back yard)”
The correct term is “BANANA” Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything.
uh huh – I’d say that the reason more Republicans wonder whether Obama is really, ideologically, a Muslim, is not because the grassroots are uninformed but because they are, quite correctly, suspicious of Obama’s ‘double-speak’ rhetoric.
While the Democrats tend to focus on emotionalism as a means for decision-making, Republicans tend to focus on practical actions. What is bothering a lot of people is the contradictions between Obama’s rhetoric and his actions.
As for his being Muslim or Christian, I’d say that Obama, as old Lori points out, is neither. For Obama, there is no higher power; the only High Power is himself. He’s a pathological narcissist and his world begins and ends with himself and his control over it.
This notion that he can and must control everything by first, his rhetorical manipulation, and second, by using a secondary set of thugs, true Chicago style, to carry out non-rhetorical control, is basic to his attitude to Iran and N. Korea.
He actually assumes that he can control their actions by his rhetoric. So, his first step is to charm them, to act ‘as if’ he is similar to them; to draw them into his control. This is how he’s behaved, so far, to the Arab States – including his bow to the King of Saudi Arabia.
If he can’t control them, then his tactic is to insult and belittle them – as he did with the PM of the UK, Sarkozy, and others in the West. This shows, to him at least, that they are irrelevant to his world.
Equally, his rhetoric to the American people has been to belittle anyone who criticizes him, defining such actions as partisan and racist.
In Obama’s world, you are either controlled by him or you don’t exist.
His trip to Egypt etc, will be one great ‘love-in’, where he will show them how they, and he, are really ‘birds of a feather’. He wants them to adulate him and so, he’ll present himself as ‘one of them’.
He’s not doing this for the betterment of America; he’s doing it for himself. He can’t be religious, remember, because he only exists for and by himself.
Do you want a nuclear power plant in your backyard? Because the biggest opponents of nuclear power in the US are generally Not In My Backyard types.
Nuclear power is categorically safe. When was the last major nuclear power plant disaster?
Obama is the president, and many of his constituents are the NIMBY-type who simultaneously bitch and moan about “global climate change” and turn around and block all forms of energy.
I go after them. But, ultimately, they don’t make the policies of this nation. Right now Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats do. And I don’t see any of them eager to do anything but bankrupt energy, and the average American taxpayer, to create their own little socialist utopia.
Actually, Iran has every right to develop both nuclear energy and nuclear bombs if it so wishes.
It’s a sovereign state.
And Israel has a right to use nuclear weapons against Iran to defend itself.
It too, is a sovereign state.
Aaaaaaand, I would strongly suggest they do a first strike because there will be no second strike by the recipient of the first strike.
That would be fair wouldn’t it?
My concern over Obama’s ME trip, and his primary goal that they ‘adore’ him, is what will be lost in this pathological psychological agenda.
Obama is declaring that all unrest between the West and the Muslim states is due only to ‘misunderstanding’ between the two. That is, the problem is all in our respective minds.
He refuses to acknowledge that the differences are structural not phenomenological. The Muslim states are trapped within a tribal sociopolitical-economic structure that is hostile to democracy, capitalism, individual freedoms, human rights, etc. These states are repressing their people’s desire for more participation in their own political and economic life – and that has led to Islamic fascism.
Obama totally, completely, utterly – ignores this.
Instead, he – and they – are tripping over a red herring, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That is an entirely separate issue, and even if it were resolved, the tribal structure of the Arab and Persian states would remain, and Islamic fascism would remain.
I’ll point out, again, the Israel has no interest in a Palestinian state because it wants the West Bank for itself, and the Arab States have never been interested in a Palestinian state, both because it would be a democracy rather than tribal, and because most Arabs consider Palestinians to be among the lowest on the very rigid ME hierarchical scale of tribal elitism.
But I find it very disturbing that Obama is reducing the very real economic, political and societal structures of the ME – that are trapped within the 7th c – to irrelevance; and that he is saying that the only reason we ‘don’t get along’ is because we, heh, misunderstand each other. What nonsense. It’s the contradictory structures that are battling each other. Why does Obama refuse to recognize this and reduce it to the irrelevance of ‘how we think about each other’.
Obummer – a Muslim? Impossible! After all he does own a dog. Come on now.
Obama isn’t a muslim.
He would never let Mohamed compete with him.
And there’s still going to be people, always Obamaphiles, agonizing over their belief in Iran’s right to nuclear energy and simultaneously believing that Israel has no right to defend itself from Iranian Hezbolah missiles, when Iran has stated it wants to wipe Israel off of the map.
obama. biblical prophesy fulfilled. the man is evil or stupid. take your pick. there is no other option
for all you folks who like to talk in circles about what is happening in the world, i hope you are prepared to defend youselves because you will have to.
Harry – your post is filled with contradictions. You don’t have to be an ‘obamaphile’ to claim, as I do, that any sovereign state has a ‘right’ to nuclear energy. There’s no such thing as a global denial of a right to energy sources.
Nuclear bombs are another issue. Israel has them though it won’t admit it. India and Pakistan. How can one stop a sovereign nation from developing them? We may have a global agreement not to expand their creation but we really have no way to stop any nation from developing them.
And who says that a nation, such as Israel, has no right to defend itself against missiles? Any nation has such a right.
As for the hyperbole of Ahmandinejad, as we must do with Obama, we must be cautious of the difference between his rhetoric and his actions.
The contradiction between the two: rhetoric and actions, is quite remarkable in Obama – whether it be in his declaration of jobs created, his declaration of friendship with various countries of the West, his rhetoric about openness, his rhetoric about a rejection of racism and partisanship…when his actions show the contrary of his words.
I’d focus on the actions not words of both Obama and Ahmadinejad.
No they won’t, old white guy, they’ll expect others to do it for them. No, they’ll DEMAND that others do it for them.
ET,
“How can one stop a sovereign nation from developing them?”
Wrong question. Although futile in the long term, in the short term, the question is: “How can you not try to stop them?”
As per India’s acquisition of the bomb, it was Canada’s CANDU reactor which made it possible. You don’t have nuclear energy technology without the ability to make the bomb. They are one and the same. Yes, some reactors have designs which can’t refine weapon-grade plutonium but if you can build a reactor, you can build a bomb. It’s the machinery which is important.
The ability to tool extremely precise parts and centrifuges is the difference between a bomb and no bomb. The rest is only time.
That said, there is a difference between a country like Australia or Japan making a bomb and Iran or Sudan (however unlikely the second may be.) If you are a country which promises to use the bomb immediately after its procurement (like Iran,) every other country on earth has every right to do EVERYTHING necessary (including conventional war) to stop them from getting it. Every other consideration is background noise.
Iran has good reasons for wanting nuclear weapons.
It lives in a bad neighbourhood. First of all, after
horrible losses when Iraq invaded in 1980, without
serious justification. After initial losses, Iran
mounted a successful defence which turned into a
successful offence, which in turn was stopped when
Iraq began missiling its cities. I don’t know whether it is established that the warheads were
all explosive, or if chemical weapons were used,
but that is hardly germane to the argument.
Then again, Iran has coastline on the Indian Ocean, into which the Strait of Hormuz debouches.
The Indian Ocean is predicted to be a venue of great-power confrontation, the great powers being India and China, both of which are wealthy and nuclear-armed states.
Then again, two of Iran’s neighbours are Russia and Pakistan.
If these facts are taken into account, the Iranian
desire for nuclear weapons is intelligible and, indeed, nearly inevitable. It is a matter of survival, not a desire to vex American officials living inside the Beltway.
Of course that is not the whole story. If the Iranians hadn’t made deadly threats against Israel, and hadn’t
shown the intention of becoming at least a regional hegemon, as they have been for lengthy periods in the past, and hadn’t behaved as
a rogue state [I won’t bother
to elaborate on this – anyone who doesn’t know what I’m talking about should go read Mickey Mouse]
we would probably accept their plans with equanimity.
Half right and sensible, half horribly wrong – that is the Iranian policy of acquiring nukes.
old white guy is right.
“If these facts are taken into account, the Iranian desire for nuclear weapons is intelligible and, indeed, nearly inevitable. It is a matter of survival, not a desire to vex American officials living inside the Beltway.”
Good posting there, “John Lewis”.*
However, I would suggest a part of Iran’s desire to develop nukes is indeed designed to “vex American officials living inside the Beltway.”
But your overall posting is spot on. In looking at these things, we sometimes need to stop and remind ourselves that it’s not about us, it’s about them.
That said, I would not want to give the impression that I’m happy Iran could be going nuclear. Far from it.
* By the way, how’s business doing at the department stores and Waitrose with this big downturn in the UK economy?
In a comment above I said that I didn’t know whether Iraq had used chemical weapons – in missiles – against Iran.
Wikipedia is unequivocal.
Over 100,000 Iranians perished during the Iran-Iraq
war from Iraqi chemical weapons. Use in missiles is
not, however, clear, and there is some dispute from US personnel as to how far the use went.
Most Americans don’t want to hear about the Iran
Iraq war because they don’t want to hear about
Saddam Hussein’s use of war gases. WMDs, you know.
John Lewis
Iraq’s use of WMD’s is common knowledge. So is Saddam’s use against the Kurds in Iraq.
“An appeaser is someone who feeds a crocodile in the hopes that it will eat him last.” Churchill
/agrees with xiat
The percentage of conservative voters in the US who are dolts is equal to the percentage of Democrat voters who are dolts.
How many Democrats believe 911 was a conspiracy compared to Republicans? (I think this illustrates my point)
Grow up folks.
Fortunately for all of us Iran has little chance of developing a nuclear bomn. At the first sign that they are getting close,Israel will terminate their program.They will do this for their survival and a thousand Obamas,each followed by a million sympathizers, calling for more understanding will not stop them… If Israel ever gets wiped out,stock up on canned goods,kiss the kids,and oil up the remaining guns.
Three things I’ve determined about Obama:
1. He is an excellent orator.
2. He wears rose colored glasses when dealing with people and may be dangerously ignorant of history.
3. He craves approval.
What a dishonest bullsh*t juxtaposition.
Aren’t they all??
last time I looked Alberta was part of Canada. not that its my first choice.
it is, however , part of a nuke nation, that is supplied from Saskatchewan and mostly run out of Ontario.
I would rather live next door to a reactor rather than a wind farm. Quieter and no lefties around. Alberta and Sask. could use nuclear instead of natural gas for the oil sands. We shall run out of natural gas long before we run out of uranium so it makes sense to sell the gas. Bambam won’t sell helicopters and parts to Isreal but will to Egypt. As far as what religion he is I don’t care. I think he is an arse in any religion.
Aaron wrote:
“correctly identify Obama as a Christian” – who decideds what’s correct and what’s not?
Indeed!!!
MNSHO is that his religion is one of convenience. During his college days at Occidental U in California, he received a scholarship intended for foreign students and was listed as Barry Soetoro, Indonesian, Muslim. Not exactely an innocent pre-schooler…..
His attendance at Wright’s church was intended to build a “legend” in a land of christians.
The defiant insistance of his christianity is closely related to the missing long form birth certificate.
Those who really believe he was born in Hawaii also believe in Al Gore’s nonsense. ……Purely partisan motivation……..
It’s nice to believe Isreal could snuff the Iranian bomb but the harsh reality is that even the US with it’s resources may not have that ability with out resort to nuclear weapons (a line even the Isreali’s may be loath to cross)…..numerous, concealed, hardened underground facilities is different that exposed reactors like Sadaam’s and Syria’s was.
Iran must be stopped very soon. God bless Israel. May they shoot straight and quickly.
Old white guy…I agree with you too.
…he’s either very smart or very dumb.
What does Obama’s religion really matter? There is no religious test for the US presidency.
I don’t think we can rule out the possibility that Obama is a Muslim – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taqqiya.
I’m personally convinced that Obama is an atheist. I don’t believe he’s a Christian and I agree with several other posters that Obama’s stated religion has traditionally been one of convenience. He went to Reverend Wright for 20 years to build up his “black street cred” to win black support in south-side Chicago.
Obama’s repeated references to non-believers in his speeches and the fact that as an academic he is much more likely to be an atheist signal this to some extent. It may also explain some of his arrogance, as people who believe there is no higher authority than themselves are totally self-absorbed and conceited as Obama seems to be.
Obama does not have a religion, IMO. He is as shallow as scum on skim milk. He pretends to pray and he pretends to honor the flag and the history of America. This man is laughing while he plays the part that the man behind the curtain is giving him. I think that Obama is one of those empty vessel people who do not care about anyone, really but they make a token show of their ‘caring’ by going on ‘date night’ with a wife that he really does not like or ‘working’ at ACORN as long as he does not have to work!
I see this man as being perfectly mailable, he is capable of saying anything with a blase remoteness – he is so empty that people can define him for themselves…but the guy/gal feeding him is lines is a cat of another color. Old White Guy, I agree with you:
‘the man is evil or stupid. take your pick. there is no other option’
If he is the former he is pulling his own strings and ‘acting’ like someone else is ‘using’ him.
He makes me cringe and to be honest, he always has; since I heard him speak at the Democrat party after John Kerry lost (thank heavens) the election in 2004. Never, in my worst nightmare, did I ever think that he would ever run for , never mind become, President of the U.S.A.!!
I miss W.
Nice timing! “[giving] Pres. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a huge victory just ten days before the Iranian election.”
Posted by Kate
That’s one angle I missed, thanks for brining it up Kate.
I don’t care if he’s a Vulcan. So far if someone had a plan to destroy the USA they could not do it better than this ego-Maniac. It seems every day this creature of someone, destroys yet another custom or right of the Republic.
Jimmy Carter was bad because he was timid & stupid. Unlike the Obama, he alienated his own Party while the O just dictates his demands with thugs to back him up. This guy is destruction, holding hands with death. Married to an ass with ideological blinkers that see in no spectrum, but what the wearer envisions as real. Some say you can be so smart that you become a fool. I think we have proof of that. We do know he has no morals at all. Just like the friend he keeps driving over who incontinently mar his pedestal of POTUS infallibility.
God help America. Old White Guy, your batting a thousand tonight.
JMO