Obama: "I'm ready to negotiate with you, Iran." Iran: "Fuck you."

[piercehawkeye45]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

Yea, I thought a lot of the speech had not been publicized. But you know when you stand in front of the world and say some pretty stupid stuff as a world leader it is hard to recover from that. Look at Bush.

I agree.

[classicman]

Iran willing to build new relationship with US

TEHRAN, Iran – Iran's president on Wednesday sent the clearest signal yet that the Islamic Republic wants warmer ties with the U.S., just one day after Washington spoke of new strategies to address the country's disputed nuclear program. Taken together, the developments indicate that the longtime adversaries are seeking ways to return to the negotiating table and ease a nearly 30-year-old diplomatic standoff.
President Barack Obama's administration has sought to start a dialogue with Iran — a departure from the Bush administration's tough talk.


Iran's uranium enrichment program has been the key point of contention. The Bush administration had insisted that Iran scrap enrichment before talks could begin — a demand Iran repeatedly rejected. On Wednesday, a senior official said the U.S. would be prepared to let Tehran continue enriching uranium at the current level for some time.

Two years ago, Washington briefly softened its position, and its negotiating partners told Tehran that they could accept a continuation of enrichment for a limited time as they moved toward talks. But Iran insisted it be allowed to enrich as part of its rights under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, ending the effort.

A decision by the U.S. to return to the negotiating table last year also did not bear fruit.

Well publicly anyway - I guess we'll see if this is an earnest attempt at diplomacy or a stall tactic so that they can continue to proceed.

The article seems to contradict itself a bit - see underlined (mine)

[TheMercenary]

My guess is they have learned from the NK's or visa versa. Stall, delay, lie, cheat, do whatever the hell you want and then pull out of the talks and blame it on the otherside.

[Undertoad]

US Contacted Iran's Ayatollah Before Election

Obama: "I am using the Swiss to send a personal letter to you, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, suggesting an improvement in our relations."

Khamenei: "Fuck you."

Prior to this month's disputed presidential election in Iran, the Obama administration sent a letter to the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling for an improvement in relations, according to interviews and the leader himself.

Ayatollah Khamenei confirmed the letter toward the end of a lengthy sermon last week, in which he accused the United States of fomenting protests in his country in the aftermath of the disputed June 12 presidential election.
...
"The American president was quoted as saying that he expected the people of Iran to take to the streets," Ayatollah Khamenei misquoted Mr. Obama as saying, according to a translation by Mideastwire.com.

"On the one hand, they [the Obama administration] write a letter to us to express their respect for the Islamic Republic and for re-establishment of ties, and on the other hand they make these remarks. Which one of these remarks are we supposed to believe? Inside the country, their agents were activated. Vandalism started. Sabotaging and setting fires on the streets started. Some shops were looted. They wanted to create chaos. Public security was violated. The violators are not the public or the supporters of the candidates. They are the ill-wishers, mercenaries and agents of the Western intelligence services and the Zionists."

It appears that no amount of friendly gesturing, no amount of precision wording put into diplomatic statements, is going to stop the Islamist fucks from making the West and Zionists the scapegoats for everything bad that happens to their regime. We screwed the pooch in 1953 and it is original sin no matter what happens since then. Now there are boogeyman Westerners with tire irons on every street corner. It seems clear now that the Obama approach will not bear fruit and so more friendly letters will be pointless, should the Ayatollahs survive the current revolutionary mood. Contacting them only reminds them who's convenient to blame.

[classicman]

North Korea threatened Wednesday to wipe the United States off the map as Washington and its allies watched for signs the regime will launch a series of missiles in the coming days.

The new U.N. Security Council resolution requires member states to seek permission to inspect suspicious cargo. North Korea has said it would consider interception a declaration of war and on Wednesday accused the U.S. of seeking to provoke another Korean War.

"If the U.S. imperialists start another war, the army and people of Korea will ... wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all," the official Korean Central News Agency said.

[sugarpop]

As if N. Korea could accomplish that.

[ZenGum]

Its like that noisy little weedy kid who has gotten used to getting his own way by yelling and screaming and throwing tantrums.

It would be good if there were some way we could administer the equivalent of a good spanking to the tiny group of leaders responsible for this, without killing huge numbers of relatively innocent civillians.

[sugarpop]

Originally Posted by ZenGum

Its like that noisy little weedy kid who has gotten used to getting his own way by yelling and screaming and throwing tantrums.

It would be good if there were some way we could administer the equivalent of a good spanking to the tiny group of leaders responsible for this, without killing huge numbers of relatively innocent civillians.

assassination?

[BrianR]

We don't assassinate foreign leaders. That's the policy. Even Saddam wasn't outright assassinated, he was deposed, tried and hung. I was thinking kidnapping, stripping them naked, a few good colon-cleanses followed by a thorough spanking by a professional disciplinarian, then recording the whole thing on tape, telling them that the video will hit YouTube the day after they get out of line.

[Undertoad]

Iran: "Now that I am in the weakest position ever, I am willing to negotiate with you in front of the international media."

Obama: (thinks silently) "Fuck you."

[piercehawkeye45]

Originally Posted by sugarpop

assassination?

Assassinations can easily backfire.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Of course, dead dictators are still improved dictators, not so?

[piercehawkeye45]

Until they get replaced by someone/something worse...

[sugarpop]

Originally Posted by piercehawkeye45

Assassinations can easily backfire.

yes, yes, but it's cheaper than YEARS and YEARS of war... or... whatever it is when you engage in war, but Congress never approves it as a war...

[sugarpop]

Originally Posted by BrianR

We don't assassinate foreign leaders. That's the policy. Even Saddam wasn't outright assassinated, he was deposed, tried and hung. I was thinking kidnapping, stripping them naked, a few good colon-cleanses followed by a thorough spanking by a professional disciplinarian, then recording the whole thing on tape, telling them that the video will hit YouTube the day after they get out of line.

I would love to give Kim Jong-il a good discliplining.