tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post2418053068129771707..comments2023-09-28T05:52:52.110-04:00Comments on The Ground Truth in Iraq: When is a Nonprofit Scholar a Spy?Erik K. Gustafsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01870861092770458296noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-81588256876917998702007-05-31T09:18:00.000-04:002007-05-31T09:18:00.000-04:00For every example you have of negotiations not wor...For every example you have of negotiations not working, I can give you ten of pig-headed stubbornness not working. We don't have to give the Iranian government everything it asks for, but we do have to be willing to give a little, take a little in order to build trust and keep our people safe.<BR/><BR/>What's the alternative? We hold out, they hold out until we're forced into another military intervention?Emily Stivershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16196906418900661808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-37424187542955351932007-05-30T16:48:00.000-04:002007-05-30T16:48:00.000-04:00There has to be a middle ground. We can't forget t...There has to be a middle ground. We can't forget the past but we can't continue the course we're on either.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-15490584162958052922007-05-30T16:22:00.000-04:002007-05-30T16:22:00.000-04:00Those who disregard the errors of the past are for...Those who disregard the errors of the past are forced to repeat them!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-26807658868887429042007-05-30T14:55:00.000-04:002007-05-30T14:55:00.000-04:00Roscoe: Not sure what Thesaurus you're using but "...Roscoe: Not sure what Thesaurus you're using but "dialogue" and "appeasement" are not synonyms. The comparison to Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of “Hitler” is interesting. It was used by Paul Wolfowitz (among others) to justify our rush to invade Iraq as well and look where that got us. <BR/><BR/>Use of the Neville Chamberlain analogy also reminds me of a new book on the subject by Jeffrey Record: "The Specter of Munich: Reconsidering the Lessons of Appeasing Hitler (Potomac Books, 2006)." Here’s an excerpt of a recent book review:<BR/><BR/>This book is a model of how good historical analysis can usefully inform current policy debates. [Jeffrey] Record, a defense expert at the U.S. Air Force's Air War College, examines the use of the "Munich analogy" in U.S. foreign policy since World War II. He begins with a concise but sophisticated explanation of why France and the United Kingdom appeased Hitler in the 1930s. Aversion to another Great War, a misreading of Hitler's aims, the lack of appropriate military preparation, and a sense of guilt over the harsh Treaty of Versailles all played a role. Given what was known at the time, he argues, appeasement was not irrational; it failed catastrophically because Hitler proved unappeasable and enduring. Spooked by the consequences of this failure, Western leaders have since publicly invoked the Munich analogy -- applying it to conflicts in Korea, Suez, Vietnam, Grenada, Nicaragua, Kosovo, Iraq, and elsewhere -- to argue for military action. But as Record shows, the case of Nazi Germany was highly exceptional: Munich was not analogous to any of these cases, nor does it apply today. Thus he concludes bluntly, "American presidents should cease invocation of the Munich analogy to justify threatened or actual uses of force." - Phillip H. Gordon, Foreign Affairs (May/June 2007)Erik K. Gustafsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870861092770458296noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-81675365434962918622007-05-30T13:52:00.000-04:002007-05-30T13:52:00.000-04:00Roscoe - there is distrust and tension on both sid...Roscoe - there is distrust and tension on both sides leading to this perversion of justice. I believe one problem is that the dialogue is not, at this point, truly open.<BR/><BR/>Furthermore, it is absolutely inaccurate to compare the current Iranian regime to Hitler's. The differences should be obvious, and we need to avoid portraying our enemies as unreasonable demons rather than the human beings we all are.<BR/><BR/>Misunderstandings exist on both sides, clearly. Neither regime is blameless when it comes to the death count in Iraq. But distrust and demonizations only breed more of the same on the other side, so open dialogue is our only option.Emily Stivershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16196906418900661808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-4596320831615062732007-05-30T13:29:00.000-04:002007-05-30T13:29:00.000-04:00The Iranians are using these innocents to trade fo...The Iranians are using these innocents to trade for their terrorists being held prisoner (rightly so) now in Iraq.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-53238510904032407412007-05-30T13:22:00.000-04:002007-05-30T13:22:00.000-04:00Please also share the web address of the Free Kian...Please also share the web address of the Free Kian Campaign: http://www.FreeKian.org<BR/><BR/>and sign the petition there. Thank you so much for your effors on behalf of Kian and Haleh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-33464301306437235822007-05-30T12:54:00.000-04:002007-05-30T12:54:00.000-04:00The Iranian government is probably only using the ...The Iranian government is probably only using the arrests as a means to create an "incident" for their own people. The government is on thin ice with the people and a revolution would be very welcome.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-39798402807971924512007-05-30T12:27:00.000-04:002007-05-30T12:27:00.000-04:00We can't lose sight of Iran's "Department of 9,000...We can't lose sight of Iran's "Department of 9,000" made up of Sunnis and Shias trying to destabilize Iraq. This is hapening in both the military and political arenas. The only hope for success in Iraq is to close the borders.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-1861268314960865512007-05-30T12:14:00.000-04:002007-05-30T12:14:00.000-04:00It frosts me that some want to open dialogue with ...It frosts me that some want to open dialogue with the Iranian regime and pobably give them everything they want because they are misunderstood. That is how Neville Chamberlain treated Hitler.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-44463035125784697772007-05-30T11:42:00.000-04:002007-05-30T11:42:00.000-04:00Well, I don't think Iranian minds - and we must be...Well, I don't think Iranian minds - and we must be careful to specify GOVERNMENT minds and not generalize about the Iranian people - are any less movable than those of our own government leaders. Most politicians are pretty narrow-minded, aren't they.<BR/><BR/>Nevertheless, the squabbles between our regimes have nothing to do with these, as you say, well-intentioned people. We all need to be careful not to confuse a country's people with its regime.Emily Stivershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16196906418900661808noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36605616.post-12949561080720333902007-05-30T11:34:00.000-04:002007-05-30T11:34:00.000-04:00Certainly a very bad situation trying to deal with...Certainly a very bad situation trying to deal with the "unmovable minds" of the Iranians. This is a dangerous business when even the well-intentioned have their lives at stake.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com