The underlying assumption in all the "this is a bad deal" rhetoric is that everyone was willing to keep the International sanctions in perpetuity. What are the chances that China and Russia continue to support the sanctions forever, which is what the "anti-deal" crowd is advocating? The sanctions were effective, especially in driving Iran to the negotiating table, but were they able to be permanently effective? Does anyone remember Bibi speaking on the floor of the United Nations in 2012 claiming Iran would have a nuclear weapon within 6 months?
The negotiations not only curtailed those active efforts but now we have a deal that says they can't pursue them for 15 years, something even the "anti-deal" side says is inevitable.
Whether right or wrong, the willingness to negotiate just bought us at least 2 years sans nuclear Iran and potentially another 15 more. So, while some focus on the incendiary rhetoric coming from the religious right-wing of both American and Iranian societies, the rational side just extended the time for Iran to go nuclear.
Even during sanctions Iran's funding of Hammas and other terrorist organizations went unabated. Watching the rockets and tunnels they build it's clear where Hammas is investing their terrorist funds. What's a little more money going to do? In all seriousness, Iran has a much greater problem at their doorstep called Isis. Hammas is now fighting Isis directly in Syria (and losing). Iran is fighting Isis directly in Iraq. If they use some of that $140B of their money that was frozen to defeat Iraq is that a bad thing? I'd rather see Iranian Republican Guard dying on the streets of Fallujah and Tikrit than US troops. Clearly Isis can't be defeated from the air and Iraqi Shiite's have no will to fight them.
In a time of crisis, we often need to pick the lesser of 2 evils. Unfortunately, we can't fight wars on every front. If Isis and radical Islam is biggest challenge facing our nation we need help in this fight. Fortunately for us, Isis sees Shiite Iran as just as big an enemy as the US. They've beheaded many more Shiites than they have Americans. Let the various factions of radical Islam fight each other. In fact, the more they do so the less resources are available to attack Western interests.
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Last edited: Jul 28, 2015