Iran Bad Cop Good Cop

NPR offered a mixed bag of Iran coverage this morning. Mike Shuster presented the usual vapid reporting on the Iran crisis in which the baseline is that uranium enrichment by Iran must be stopped and that whatever course the US/Europe chooses for this goal must be accepted by Iran. With this frame the main story is whether the US/Europe will be able to get China and Russia to come on board. I would recommend that NPR (and any curious citizens take a look at the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Of particular interest is

Article I

Each nuclear-weapon State Party to the Treaty undertakes not to transfer to any recipient whatsoever nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or control over such weapons or explosive devices directly, or indirectly; and not in any way to assist, encourage, or induce any non-nuclear-weapon State to manufacture or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices, or control over such weapons or explosive devices.

which the US has clearly violated in its assitance with covering up Israel's Nuclear Weapons program

and

Article IV

Nothing in this Treaty shall be interpreted as affecting the inalienable right of all the Parties to the Treaty to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination and in conformity with Articles I and II of this Treaty.

which sheds a different light on what Mike Shuster describes as Iran's inflexibility on giving up uranium enrichment.


On the positive side NPR's Michele Kelemen interviewed retired U.S. Ambassador John Limbert who was posted to Iran back in 1979. Limbert offered a rare dissent from the current war planning. He encouraged direct talks and sharply criticized the talk of military action against Iran. It is refreshing to hear from someone who actually knows Farsi and has had experience in Iran--and besides he's hardly a "leftist."