and in addition

Submitted by joel novak (United States), May 9, 2006 at 16:13

I agree with you and Sen McCain that we must prevent Iran from developing a nuclear capability. And I agree with you that we may be able to accomplish this if we are successful in mobilizing the saner elements of their people. To date however, our methods for communicating our intentions to moderate Iran and even moderate Islam have not effective. Either we go in with all guns blazing or we adopt the ambiguity of our European colleagues.

An alternate approach might be to define a series of tactically and strategically significant lines in the sand, each of which if violated would draw a measured and preannounced response. Perhaps the responses would begin with sanctions, move to boycotts and then onto conventional and finally nuclear attacks, first on limited military targets and then onto extented military and economic targets.

Those lines in the sand and our responses ought to be known not only to the Iranian leadership but throughout the world. No one should be able to claim to be surprised. Only with an approach like this will the world, including and importantly the moderate Iranians, come to understand our resolve, our deliberateness and ourlimited patience.

However, undertaking the later objective cannot be seen as an alternative

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