Iran Versus the World: Comparing Threats

This was a letter to the editor on 2/23/12

The drums of war are beating loudly in Washington, D.C. and in U.S. and Israeli media. The same war drum beaters that gave us the war in Iraq have reappeared with another round of "evidence" of Iran's nuclear ambitions.

How frightened should we be about the nuclear ambitions of Iran? If we believe the five major nuclear powers and the warmongering think tanks, we should be horrified by the propect of a nuclear-armed Iran. The fears of the five nuclear powers might seem odd, given their obvious attraction to nuclear warheads: United States (10,600 warheads), Russia (8,600 warheads), Britain (200 warheads), France (350 warheads) and China (400 warheads).

Perhaps the five nuclear powers are concerened about Iran's threat to their neighbors in the Middle East, such as Israel (200 warheads), and the newest members of the nuclear club, India and Pakistan (about 200 warheads between them). It would seem that if anyone should be fearful of nuclear weapons, it should be Iran. They are surrounded by nuclear-tipped nations that have shown a real taste for settling disputes militarily.

Until the nuclear nations agree to reduce and eliminate their nuclear arsenals, maybe a balance of terror is the better alternative.