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What nuclear threat? Iran doesn't have nuclear weapons and has disavowed getting them. It has signed the non-proliferation treaty and has cooperated in efforts at compliance. The problem is that Iran has the mistaken notion that nuclear energy is a viable energy strategy, despite the fact that there are no failsafe methods of storing and disposing of the spent material. Is this really a risk or is it more an opportunity for cooperation? Much depends on attitude. America and Israel didn't threaten to attack the USSR, a Godless communist regime and we avoided nuclear conflict with it. Why is Iran different? Is it because the neo-cons believe they can pound Iran with impunity? Would the Shiites just accept pre-emptive attacks or would they counterattack, as they claim? Is the cup half empty or half full?

The 2007 National Intelligence Estimate (N.I.E.), the consensus of 16 American intelligence agencies concluded with high confidence that Iran stopped nuclear weapons development in 2003. Why do Bush and Cheney continue to claim that Iran is still developing nuclear weapon capabilities? Why don't they cite the evidence to support their allegations? The only plausible reason is that such evidence does not exist, just like the evidence of risk from Saddam's Iraq didn't exist before the American invasion. Evidently, the neo-cons just got too insular in their "group think". They convinced themselves they knew what they didn't and now they are in the same boat with Iran. When will they ever learn?

Don't misunderstand that we should or could implicitly believe everything that President Ahmedinejab or other Iranians say, no more than we can believe everything that President Bush and other American leaders say. Of course we need to watch closely and verify that they do what they say, both at home and in Iran. We are all human beings subject to human frailties and failings. However, let's try to follow Jesus' injunction to see the best in all of our brothers and sisters and be prepared to turn the other cheek, before we decide to attack.

Frankly, the Iranians have been patient with America on many occasions. Only a few years ago, America mistakenly shot down an Iranian passenger airliner and they exercised restraint and did not retaliate! Imagine what would happen if Iran shot down an American passenger plane within 100 miles of the US border! We have invaded the neighboring countries on either side of Iran (Iraq and Afghanistan) and installed new regimes. How would America

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