The random political thoughts thread (Part Deux)

[scaeagles]

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

No, I don't support economic sanctions and incentives as a tool of societal reform. But then, for the most par, neither do you; at least when it is our government doing it internally. You're just ok with doing it to other people.

If you would show me where I said I support economic sanctions against other countries, I'd appreciate it. I don't support them, because economic sanctions don't hurt the governments of the countries that are sanctioned, they hurt the already poor and starving masses while the dictators stay in power and suffer no ill effect. As the UN oil-for-food program showed, even humanitarian efforts to overcome economic sanctions are corrupted to the benefit of the dictator.

In the little reading I've done on the NPT, and specifically North Korea's withdrawal from the treaty, there is a great deal of international debate over the legality and their withdrawal. I guess I don't know why that should be so hard to determine, but that's another story.

So we come to the conundrum.....Iran wants nukes and has said that Israel does not have the right to exist and that they should be destroyed. One great thing about the cold war was dealing with the Soviets who didn't want to die either. The leadership of Iran? I would figure they don't necessarily fall under that same category and would embrace the chance to be remembered as the destroyers of Israel. So....do we (and the international community) allow Iran to have the chance to give nukes to terrorists or use them on Israel?

I respect sovereignty.

I believe your question earlier about the right of outside influences to dictate what a sovereign country does was misreading my post about my disgust with the Bush administration thinking, in the same way that the Clinton administration thought, that giving Iran nuclear power technology as a bribe to stop the enrichment of uranium will work. In North Korea, Clinton sped up the process of them acquiring nuclear weapons. In Iran, I believe the same thing will take place.

It makes no sense to do it.

[Alex]

Ok, I took the second paragraph of the post I was responding to you as taking a defensive position of a view you felt I opposed. If not then cool.

No, the government shouldn't give nuclear technology to Iran. They should just let Iran buy it from the lowest bidding company able to provide it.

The statement that Israel should not exist is not relevant, in my opinion, to whether they should be allowed to develop a bomb if they so choose.

As for whether Iran can legally withdraw, about the only punishment I can see the United Nations being able to exact on a sovereign nation is either invasion, which wouldn't happen, and expulsion from the United Nations, which also wouldn't happen as it would be an acknowledgement that membership isn't paricularly vital to a countries existence.