Sheldon Richman: Stop Rattling Sabers at Iran
America's hostile attitude undercuts Iranian moderates and bolstered the hardliners
Not everyone wants the United States to improve relations with Iran. Some prefer war instead. Despite the overtures from the new Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, Iran's regime must still be demonized as a group of religious fanatics—mad mullahs—who cannot be reasoned with and who want nothing more than to lob nuclear warheads at the United States and Israel. This is not because Iran is a threat to the American people, or the Israelis, writes Sheldon Richman, but because a friendly Iran would no longer furnish the convenient enemy the hawks need.