Planned Obsolescence

It is not a question as to whether or not the Iran agreement will work, it is whether or not the rest of the world provides a peaceful place for Iran. A war can only exist if there are two that consider each other enemies. 

It was important Europe, Russia, China and the USA all had a vested interest in the agreement. Every major country involved in these talks have vital interests in the region. It all has to work and the agreement is a catalyst to a lasting peace. 

One of the worst cases of failed agreements was the invasion into Iraq. It caused an enormous shift in the USA's trustworthiness. The world has a chance to garner peace and make it work. The USA cannot simply wait and place another president in office that seeks reasons to war. 

It is important the entire global community embrace this agreement with Iran and bring the country into a desired peace. We know the region is capable of it. The Sunnis, Shia and Kurds accept each other in domestic peace. It is time to bring war to an end. Pandora's Box and Slippery Slopes are some of the best reasons to end hate and promote peace. This agreement is important, but, the timeline to ten to fifteen years into the future is to secure a stable and prosperous Middle East. 

When reflecting on Iran and the current war environment, it is easy to appreciate Iran's ability to defend their own people. Without the Shia militia, Iraq would have been lost. Iran is capable of being a strong ally.

I can't speak for him, but, I can know how I understand him. 

His emotional distance from the attacks of September 11, 2015 requires some degree of empathy. If one doesn't experience empathy how can one return the emotion.

We are not fully mature in emotional competency simply because we exist. Emotional competency comes with a full experience of life and how love is given and received.  

July 14, 2015
By Syreeta McFadden

I first read (click here) James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time 20 years ago, and it saved me. At the time I was living in Morningside Heights, a neighborhood to the south-west of Harlem. The months before I picked up that book had built in me a kind of dread I couldn’t name, spurred on by a constellation of events that were all designed to remind me of “my place”. I had just finished a year at Columbia University as one of just a very few black students there....

I really don't care to hear any politics over this agreement. The Iranian Revolution occurred in 1979. There is every reason to believe this should never have occurred. This tells the world something about the current government of Iran.

The US Republicans are simpletons. They will yell and scream that Iran will have nuclear weapons in ten years. It is nonsense.

Iran has yet to be known by the world. It is the country's scholars that have carried the will of the people to the negotiation table.This is not only a historic agreement, but, defied all odds it exists at all.

I sincerely believe Iran will come into a new world identity. Iran's neighbors need to reach out to the government diplomatically to extend this agreement to end hostilities and bring Iran into the fold of allies that is seeking to protect the peaceful people and their nations. Now is the time when Iran needs to come to terms with it's current status of defense and realize there is an alliance of Arab countries that want peace. 

Lifting the sanctions is easy. Asking for trade relations is even more simple. But, to bring this agreement full circle to hold peace in the palm of their hands and know all of the Middle East is of the same will and esteem is nothing to be ignored. 

Iran and the Arab Alliance have a common enemy. It is time for Iran to appreciate the countries in the Middle East and bring an end to Daesh. It would be a profound understanding the Shia of the Middle East have lived through decades of fear to come into the 21st Century without it. There is no need for any Shi'ite to fear other peoples and nations. 

The conflicts between the Shi'ites and Sunnis has to stop. Iran has come this far, it is time it make a few more steps to bring security to it's country. The Iranian people deserve to be protected in peace. It would be wrong for Iran to continue to believe any Shia are in danger when there is a simple solution.

Eric Garner was selling cigarettes that he paid taxes on, for a $1.00.

Eric Garner was piecing together a lower middle class life in order to elevate his children. He was paying for activities in their school. He was looking forward to supporting them in college. I can only imagine the cruel thoughts going through the mind of Mr. Garner as he lay in the street being strangled by six police officers. It wasn't one, it was all of the police officers. They were all on the same high horse. Not one of them stopped the death of Eric Garner. 

The Garner young people have a task before them. They need to finish the schooling their father wanted for them. They need to make him proud. I am sure their father will be dearly missed. They won't be able to get past the empty chair at their graduations and other special moments in life, but, they can be proud of him and his dreams for them.

July 14, 2015
By Kevin Conlon

(CNN) Almost one year to the day (click here) after he died at the hands of New York City police officers -- an episode that fueled months of racially underscored anti-police protests across the nation -- the family of Eric Garner accepted a pretrial settlement from the city Monday. 

Garner's estate, which filed a claim against the city in October 2014 for damages related to his death, will be paid $5.9 million, according to a city official. 

"Following a judicious review of the claim and facts of this case, my office was able to reach a settlement with the estate of Eric Garner that is in the best interests of all parties," said New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, whose office is charged with settling claims against the city....

The Executive Branch of the US Constitution has significant power. The Presidency means something.

This post has been updated now that the Obama administration has reached a deal with Iran.

July 14, 2015
By Amber Phillips

Pretty soon, Congress (click here) could have an up-or-down vote on President Obama's nuclear deal with Iran.
But don't let your lawmaker fool you: It's not written in stone that Congress has the right to approve or disapprove of major international negotiations. It's not even a law.
The dirty little secret of U.S. international negotiations is this: Exactly how our government approves of most of this stuff is decided on a case-by-case basis.
Depending on what the president calls a deal with another country -- is it a treaty? an executive agreement? -- and the political movement du jour, a deal like the one with Iran could need a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate to be approved or could slide by without any vote at all.

Hyeonseo Lee, the North Korean peacemaker. She asks for us to appeal for the North Korean people.

As a child growing (click here) up in North Korea, Hyeonseo Lee thought her country was “the best on the planet.” It wasn't until the famine of the 90s that she began to wonder. She escaped the country at 14, to begin a life in hiding, as a refugee in China. Hers is a harrowing, personal tale of survival and hope — and a powerful reminder of those who face constant danger, even when the border is far behind.

As per usual, the political media in the USA is unable to find the correct words for the VERIFIABLE AGREEMENT. 

It is not a deal that has been negotiated with Iran. It is a verifiable agreement that is expected to pass the UN Security Council to become a UN Resolution.

The USA looks forward to the end of misunderstandings with Iran and a return of US citizens.

July 13, 2015

A third hearing (click here) in the trial of jailed Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian on espionage charges took place behind closed doors in Tehran on Monday, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported.
The first and second hearings of Iranian-U.S. citizen Rezaian were held behind closed doors on May 26 and June 8 respectively at the Revolutionary Court in Tehran. Rezaian has been in Tehran's Evin prison since his arrest in July 2014. "The trial will continue and when the verdict is issued we will announce it to people,” judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said, according to the semi-official ILNA agency....

Iran needs to join the Middle East Coalition to end Daesh. It cannot do it alone.

The Shi'ite militias in Iraq have joined the Iraqi military to reduce the imposition of Daesh; there is no reason similar alliance can't exist to end the threat of Daesh.

Iran is not used to thinking of itself as a part of a larger Middle East and it is time that goes forward. Iran cannot defeat Daesh alone. The greater Middle East has no plans to use the opposition of Daesh to victimize any Shia population within their countries. 

Nasrallah is correct to call for consolidation with Iran, however, to exclude that consolidation as a great force in alliance with sovereign governments is a terrible error. 

There is a renewed interest in peace with Iran by the major powers of the world, the Shia should recognize this as a chance to join coalitions of peace that will insure the place of the Shi'ites in the region. Iran needs to see their place in the Middle East differently from the past. It is important Iran seek stability and peace. The celebration of Eid is a perfect time to change the relationships between Iran and other countries. 

This new relationship between Iran and the world should be seen by countries such as Jordan and Saudi Arabia to resolve all countries act to end the threat of Daesh. The Arab Coalition should consider talks with Iran as a method to stabilize the region. 

The Shia Crescent can be a new strength to the region to end instability and violence.

July 14, 2015

Recently, Foreign Affairs (click here) magazine ran an article on the growing ties between Iran and the Taliban. Ahmad Javid, the author of the article, points to a number of reports that document Iran’s ongoing effort to recruit and train Taliban fighters. Iranian policy in this regard, according to Javid, is alarming.

Of course, it is not as if this is the first time Iran is meddling in the internal matters of other countries. Earlier on two occasions, the international forces in Afghanistan did seize shipments of Iranian ammunitions and weapons intended for the Taliban. 

Javid argues that the shipments in 2007 and in 2011 were big enough, therefore, the Iranian authorities must have known about them. Commenting on Iran’s policy, former US army General David Petraeus said he believed that Iran was not oblivious to the fact that its help to the Taliban would not change much, but it sought to make the American task in Afghanistan a difficult one.

Iran was driven by its security concerns. In fact, the objective is primarily to make the Americans bleed rather than to help the Taliban return to power. In the past, Iran opposed the Taliban rule in Afghanistan lest they joined forces with Jundallah, a Sunni group that operates inside Iran. In 1998, Iran was about to launch an attack against the Taliban. Moreover, Iran supported the United States’ effort in 2001 to bring down the Taliban regime....

July 14, 2015
By Elizabeth Drew

Those having trouble making sense (click here) of the American presidential election need not worry. It doesn’t make sense. Indeed, the ongoing campaign is the weirdest contest for the country’s highest office in modern times, owing not just to the number of candidates — there are currently 14 of them, with two or three more expected soon — but also their nature.

The usual question posed to presidential aspirants is: Why are you running? This year, the answer seems to be: Why not? As long as one is not too attached to one’s dignity, there is little to lose and a lot to be gained from running. A failed presidential campaign, even a disastrous one, can lead to higher speaking fees, richer book contracts, or a television gig. Newt Gingrich and Mike Huckabee both failed to win the Republican nomination, but secured seats on cable talk shows....

July 14, 2015
By Reuters 
 

TUNIS — Tunisia’s interior minister (click here) said security forces had almost wiped out an Islamist militant group linked to Al Qaeda during a crackdown launched after two deadly attacks on tourists.

Clashes last week killed leaders, including two veteran Algerian militants, from the Okba Ibn Nafaa brigade, blamed for an assault on the Bardo Museum in Tunis in March, minister Najem Gharselli told reporters late on Sunday.

The North African country has come under growing international pressure to show it is in control of militants after a gunman also killed 38 holidaymakers at a beach hotel in Sousse last month, an attack claimed by the Daesh group.

“After we killed some of their leaders in [the central region of] Gafsa a few days ago we have now destroyed 90 per cent of Okba Ibn Nafaa,” the minister said.

Okba Ibn Nafaa, allied with Al Qaeda’s north African wing, was among the most active of hardline groups that emerged after Tunisia’s 2011 “Arab Spring” uprising ousted autocrat Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali....

July 15, 2015
By Reuters

ISTANBUL — Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (click here) kicked off long-delayed talks on forming a coalition government on Monday after firing a warning to opposition parties not to question the role of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the political process.

Opposition parties have signalled they want Erdogan to keep out of daily politics if they join any coalition government — a direct challenge to the president, who wants to turn his largely ceremonial role into a powerful executive post....

Saudi Arabia is resolved to protect all it's people, including the Shia. In that terrorism will never have a foothold in the kingdom. Iran needs to stop demanding the Houthis rise in opposition to it's Yemen government. Houthis are dying in significant numbers. Iran has to require peace in all it's international relationships. Protecting the Houthis by exposing any assault is more important than attacks that result in their deaths.

June 5, 2015

Terrorists (click here) have failed to understand the Kingdom and its people. They have underestimated the strength of the forces they are trying to confront. They have misjudged the Saudi people. In the second bombing of a Shiite mosque last Friday, they sought to sow their stock-in-trade. They sought to sow terror. But instead, they have reaped the cold anger of every decent man and woman. They have also discovered the resolution of all who live and work in the Kingdom. 

They have sought to create discord and suspicion. Instead they have brought forth a mighty wave of determination, determination to preserve the unity and safety of the Kingdom and each and every one of its citizens.

The May 29 attack on the Al-Anoud Mosque in Dammam was another heinous crime, coming just one week after the suicide bombing at Al-Qadeeh, Qatif, which killed 21 worshippers attending Friday prayers. This time the authorities were prepared. There are no “soft targets” in Saudi Arabia any more. Though three innocent people died in this latest attack, the men of violence had hoped for a far bigger butcher’s bill. And they were disappointed....

July 13, 2015
By AFP

...The rival General National Congress (GNC) (click here) is based in Tripoli and was set up by a militia alliance, including Islamists, known as Fajr Libya, after it seized the capital last August.

The two sides have been locked in months of thorny negotiations brokered by UN envoy Bernardino Leon who has struggled to clinch a deal on a national unity government and hold fresh polls.

The GNC boycotted Saturday's ceremony in the Moroccan resort of Skhirat, saying Leon's draft deal was not "satisfactory" and calling for "modifications".

Nevertheless, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was "encouraged" by the initialling of the accord, a UN statement said.

"He looks forward to the speedy conclusion of the full agreement and its implementation," a spokesman for the UN chief said.

"This act is a clear demonstration of political will and courage and brings the country one step closer to resolving the current institutional and security crisis."

There is a problem with the truce between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in Yemen. It appears, at the very least to Saudi Arabia, the Houthis are using the truce to rearm and plan a further assault. Any truce doesn't have a chance if there is continued arms build up. The Houthis have to prove they are honoring the truce to build trust and not further aggressions. Saudi Arabia is justified in it's defense of the truce to prevent further militarization of the Houthis.

July 13, 2015
 

...The southern fighters (click here) managed to push back the rebels in the coastal Ras Amran area, west of Aden, according to General Fadhel Hasan, a spokesman of the Popular Resistance.

"We have seized control of the area that represents the western entry into Aden," he said, adding that the group "received sophisticated weapons from the coalition".

But the rebels prevented a convoy of desperately needed relief aid travelling from the western port city of Hodeida to enter Aden, said local relief activist Adnan Al Kaf. 

Clashes also persisted in the central city of Taez and in the southern Shabwa province, where the Popular Resistance said 21 of its fighters were killed in three days of clashes. 

The UN-proposed humanitarian truce technically went into effect at 2059 GMT Friday and is supposed to run until July 17, the last day of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan....

There is a real chance for global peace.

The "Axis of Evil" speech has been dissolved. 

I congratulate all the parties involved.  

July 14, 2015
By Justin Fishel and Molly Hunter

U.S. led negotiations (click here) between Iran and six world powers have concluded with a final, historic agreement that will temporarily cut off Iran's pathway to making a nuclear bomb in exchange for the relief of crippling economic sanctions levied by the U.S. and United Nations. 

The world needs to surround this agreement and build on it. This agreement is an overlay to the relationships that will come from it.
 

Iran has agreed to significantly reduce its stockpile of enriched nuclear material and cease further enrichment, effectively extending the time it would take Iran to build a bomb from a few months to one year, over to 10 years. Upon verification that Iran is keeping its commitments to dismantle much of its nuclear program, major economic sanctions will be lifted, effectively releasing more than $100 billion in frozen Iranian assets. That undetermined point in time is now known as "implementation day." 

Europe has an intense interest in peace when it comes to the Iranian nuclear program. I would think countries negotiating trade agreements with Iran after this historic agreement will also build solid reasons for Iran to end their nuclear program forever.
 

Negotiators also agreed that a long-standing arms embargo on Iran would be lifted over time, one of the major sticking points in the talks and a decision that will be seen as a major concession by the United States. The nuclear accord states that five years from now Iran will be able to buy and sell conventional arms on the international market, and in eight years it will be allowed to do the same with ballistic missiles....

Peace can be built on trade. With Iran belonging to the Non-Proliferation Treaty there is every reason to believe economic strength will develop the incentive to peace. War never solves the need for economic strength, it destroys it. The Iranian people have chosen wisely in their elections for a President that have lead them into the future. It is up to the world and the Iranian people to continue to build on this historic agreement. The future now invites peace and it should be pursued with vigor.

I am proud of the USA's role in this agreement. Tomorrow has promise for the Middle East, it should not be taken lightly. The people of Iran has spoken. Our people need to respond in kind. Opening relationships with Iran will help solve many problems that isolation never could.  

The P5+1 have developed a main document and five very detailed technical appendices.

Dr. Ernest Moniz is at the center of this agreement and will be vital in creating an understanding of it's depth to Congress. I look forward to hearing from him regarding the technical details.

The negotiations has been working on a UN Security Council Resolution that all members have consented. The agreement is expected to be unanimously agreed to by the Security Council. The IAEA will have access to report the steps taken by Iran to fulfill the agreement. 

All major power are involved; China, France, Germany, Russia, the UK and the US have come to a historic agreement. This agreement should never be squandered for politics. The implications of the agreement are far reaching. All the major powers have concluded their participation, this is an international agreement and requires a sober approach.