Hi Ari ben and Philo in Israel.

The when the Israeli Air Force bombed Iraq's Ossirak nuclear reactor, it did more for nuclear disarmament in five minutes, then all of the UN resolutions passed in the last fifty years.

Well done. I presume you have some maps of Iran?

Good post Irfan, though whether you have read Saladin and the Crusaders aright I'm not sure - I am about to embark on “The Oxford History of the Crusades” by Jonathan Riley-Smith and might then be in a better position to assess your comments.

I think Iran and its President have a very real problem as I believe their oil is due to run out in about 15 years or so. So what? Well, I believe Iran has a per capita GDP of just $7,000 and depends on oil exports for the state subsidies that keep its population fed and clothed.

Recently Mr Ahmedinejad said he intended reducing 66,000 Iranian villages down to 10,000, relocating 30 million Iranians out of 70 millions, dwarfing in relative terms anything else done in modern history, including Stalin's collectivization campaign of the late 1920s.

Iran is about to become an even more desperate and unpredictable player on the world scene, raising even more questions about Muslim nations ability to provide a secure prosperous well ordered society for all of their citizens, not to mention for those harassed persecuted non Muslims eking out a precarious existence in their midst. Stirring up hatred against Israel is merely a sideshow to divert attention from a far more serious problem, the very survival of a nation.

Bushbred,

one more point that I could not fit in 350 words earlier:

France did not help Arabs going nuclear, because although Iranians are Moslems, Iran is not an Arab country (in fact, calling them "Arab" would deeply insult them). Further, Iran of that time was under the Shah: a western country and one of Israel's best allies (the real reason why Iran today hates Israel so much is because they were the Shah's closest friends and helped build his milirary force).

As for the Russians today, they are simply broke and desperate for any possible revenue.

About that pipeline - Israel would indeed benefit from it - and so would the Iranians who hold 50% of the shares in that pipe, and so will Europe who would get cheaper petrol, but the ideas that wars (that cost so much more) are started on such prospects is ridiculous and far-fetched. The truth is that the Iraq war started as a matter of honour, due to Junior Bush's family obligation to complete what his father, Senior Bush failed to complete in 1990.

Sorry about carelessly calling Iranians Arabs, Yuanyutsu, when we know they are Persians superior to the Arabs. Anyhow, regarding France helping Iran with uranium enrichment. It has been on with France and Germany, and even Britain for a long time now, but lessenned through a ban apparently partly through the UN. However, on October 21, 2003, according to Google Online, France and Germany agreed to awaken the deal somwhat, but under immediate protest again, naturally.

In that Google article there is also mention about regime change needed in Iran as well as Iraq, which is so worrying if there is an attempt to carry it out sometime in the future, especially if it is all part of the American Project for the 21st Century, and the New World Order, even planned well before George W' took office.

One wonders whether since the end of the Cold War with unipolarity now rather than bi-polarity, we have inherited a far crazier world, Yuanyutsu? Maybe Online Opinion columns like ours could make some better suggestions for the future - even if only for our great-great grandkids?

Redneck

What went wrong with Islam? Islam appears to be a dysfunctional religion for a number of reasons. From the beginning the Muslim religion's identity has hung on, among other things, holy war and jihad, and a stream of forced converts. There is no provision for peace. Had Mohammed and his descendants succeeded in forcibly converting the whole world to Islam, Islam at that point would have self-desructed. Mohammedism failed.

Semantics holds the key to understanding Islam.

Religion to the west or Christendom means churchy stuff, to the Muslim it means Law. Most Muslim concepts are not understood by the west.

Inherent in the Muslim Law is the need to impose the Muslim Law on everybody. Once under the Muslim Law the Law imposes the death penalty on a person who converts to another religion as well on the person who does the converting.

Asoma Bin Lardin is trying to reform or resurrect Mohammed's dream, but Asoma is lawless by any Law and is therefore a criminal.

The Iranian Primeminister's statement was an act of terrorism and therefore incompatable with logic and reason. It could have also have contained instructions to other terrorists.

Regards

Yuyutsu,

According to Ben Gorion diaries the 1948 war was a setup by Israeli forces to drag the Egyptians into a 'fast and surprising war'.

Anyway, you justified some positions and avoided three simple questions that nobody seems to be willing to answer:

1- What do you believe should be the Israeli borders? Are they 'fixed' or 'dynamic'?
2- Do you support a Palestinian state?
3- Do you support the 'land, homes for settlers' and 'tents for Palestinians' that has been going on for the last 50 years? If so, are you seriously asking why these people 'hate you'?

And please don't use the 'elephat fears the mosquitos, so he takes their land for peace' argument. Israel is the third strongest army today (excluding its Nuclear capabilities) and can handle European armies combines if they need to.