OLMERT SPEAKS TO AIPAC, IRAN IS "ENEMY"

Israel's prime minister was in Washington, D.C., last night talking to that neo-con Israeli-American lobby, AIPAC. Condi Rice was also there with her own talk.

Both of them agreed Iran was the enemy. So they proceeded to demonize Iran, calling it a grave threat to peace and security.

Where have we heard this before?

Back in 2001-2002, Condi Rice was among the most vocal, calling Iraq a grave and imminent danger, saying that the U.S. could not allow "the smoking gun" to turn into a "mushroom cloud." That Saddam Hussein had WMD, that he was intent on acquiring nuclear weapons, that he had a stockpile of germ agents. All of which proved to be so much hot air and disproved speculation.

Now the focus is on Iran. "We must not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon!"

Consider that there is no evidence that Iran has a nuclear weapon or is trying to make one. Although, if it did, I could understand completely as a nuclear weapon might be the only deterrent to Bush's war machine attacking and invading Iran in the same way as it did to Iraq. Consider how Bush treads softly around North Korea which does indeed have nuclear weapons.

But nevertheless there is no proof Iran has or wants nuclear weapons. Iran's supreme religious leader came out just yesterday with a denial, saying that any intelligent nation has no need or want for nuclear bombs.

Yet the drumbeat towards attacking Iran continues, and the "coalition of the willing" consists of those reactionary Israeli government leaders like Ehud Olmert and his co-patriots who continue to build Israeli settlements on land taken from the Palestinians during the 1967 War and the neo-cons and reactionaries here in the U.S. like Bill Kristol, Elliot Abrams and the other AIPAC members, as well as key members of the Bush cabinet such as Rice and VP Dick Cheney.

Imagine what a war with Iran would do to Middle East peace and stability. There would be fallout for the next 500 years. There would be enmity between Americans and Iranians for at least that long. Consider what the Fall of Constantinople did to the relations between Greeks and Turks. After more 600 years, they still hate one another for what happened. We could expect the same between the East and West over Iran, maybe lasting even longer.

We need to talk with Iran, not demonize it and its people. We need to get rid of Cheney and Rice and Bush and their militaristic hegemony and imperialism. Instead of starting a war with Iran, we need to sit down with the Iranians and treat them with respect and dignity. That is the way to beginning to solve the so far intractable problems for the U.S. and Israel in the Middle East.