"Iran now ready to double its Uranium enrichment." - U.N.

[Rukentuts]

True, but getting some poor schmuck to put on suicide vest is a world away from a cultural indifference to collective suicide.

Collective suicide doesn't matter. All the leaders have to do is push a button and hide in a cave as the bombs fall.

Debunked as a translation error, don't take it as gospel.

The article addresses that, actually.

Translation controversy

Many news sources repeated the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting statement by Ahmadinejad that "Israel must be wiped off the map",[80][81] an English idiom which means to "cause a place to stop existing",[82] or to "obliterate totally",[83] or "destroy completely".[84]

The Iranian presidential website stated that "the Zionist Regime of Israel faces a deadend and will under God's grace be wiped off the map," and "the Zionist Regime that is a usurper and illegitimate regime and a cancerous tumor should be wiped off the map."[85]

Ahmadinejad's phrase was "ب*يد *ز ص*حه روز**ر محو *ود" according to the text published on the President's Office's website.[86]

Doesn't seem like a translation error to me.

[chadwix]

What were they then?

Atomic

Atomic bombs are fission bombs, nuclear bombs are all thermonuclear weapons and hydrogen bombs are fusion bombs.

Nitpicking? Nahh

[Deleted]

Well for one, even if you don't think they'd be stupid enough to actually give the bomb to a group like Hezbollah, all of their neighbors are absolutely terrified about the prospect of a nuclear arms race in the middle east. I know for a fact (yes...I do mean firsthand knowledge) that pretty much every single middle eastern nation outside of Iran has asked us (The USA) to attack Iran rather than letting them get the bomb...they don't talk about it but you'd better believe that if it does happen it will go ahead with the blessings of the Saudi's, the Gulf states, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan and more. Seems to me that their opinions matter most considering their proximity...

So if you'd be for Iran getting the bomb - I'd ask you how you would justify it to the Arab states who really don't seem to like the idea.

I never said I am for Iran having nukes, I think no country should have them, I asked what we could do to prevent it.

[titan972]

What gives us the right? From their perspective, the US is sympathetic towards terrorists. And the US is still the only country to have actually used a nuke.

Russia's made threats....but they're too big to do anything about. China's made threats...but they're also too big. India and Pakistan make threats on a fairly regular basis, but they're too well armed. The US has made tons of threats...but we're the boss so we can do what we want. Israel has made threats, but they're our allies so they get a free ride.

But ohhhh no, Iran has made threats so that must mean they're dangerously unstable and actually going to act on them! Because you know, of the countries listed above which ones have actually gone to war in the last 30 years? I can tell you it wasn't Iran.

Iran's got bluster but that's it, they're not stupid enough to actually use nukes or give one to terrorists.

Of course the world is exactly the same as it was in WW2 right?...nothing has changed at all correct? The Japanese and the Germans would have never used the bomb in WW2 if they had the chance I suppose...

Are you really that naive?

[srathgar]

imo Iran is dangerous due to the fact that it is a country led by highly religious people/extremists, to whom going to your own death in battle means becomming a martyr. I do not have a problem in general with islam (dont want it to be religious debate but not rly any way going around it) but letting a bunch of wackjobs who believe that suicide bombing is gonna make them martyrs something as terrifying as a nuclear bomb. Sure that may not be Iran itself but if the leader is borderline insane, then what would stop him from considering giving it to terrorists and use them as a means to really wreck havoc in the western world. Think command and conquer GLA style with nukes instead of bio weapons.
This is ofc MY OPINION, i repeat MY OWN OPINION!

[wookybear]

1) Yeah, that's what US officials say.
2) You might want to explain that reasoning to the thousands of people who are still suffering from the aftermath of that bomb, they'll be pleased to listen.

I just don't know why people keep defending ANY use of nuclear weapons, regardless of who the culprit is.

Number of of deaths (Estimated since its such a huge number) sustained worldwide during WWII 72 million

Various sources can easily be found on the net that point to similar figures.

Im going to say that I think those nukes DID save more than they killed. And now the world has seen just how horrible they are, hopefully they wont need ever be used again.

[Reeve]

Atomic

Atomic bombs are fission bombs, nuclear bombs are all thermonuclear weapons and hydrogen bombs are fusion bombs.

Nitpicking? Nahh

Nuclear bomb refers to all nuclear weaponry, including both fission bombs and fusion bombs.

[Sunseeker]

Well for one, even if you don't think they'd be stupid enough to actually give the bomb to a group like Hezbollah, all of their neighbors are absolutely terrified about the prospect of a nuclear arms race in the middle east. I know for a fact (yes...I do mean firsthand knowledge) that pretty much every single middle eastern nation outside of Iran has asked us (The USA) to attack Iran rather than letting them get the bomb...they don't talk about it but you'd better believe that if it does happen it will go ahead with the blessings of the Saudi's, the Gulf states, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan and more. Seems to me that their opinions matter most considering their proximity...

So if you'd be for Iran getting the bomb - I'd ask you how you would justify it to the Arab states who really don't seem to like the idea.

If the middle-east doesn't like it, then they can use their billions of dollars to build an army and stop buying fancy cars and cities in the middle of the desert and do it themselves. I don't care if they "want us to" or will give us their "blessing". I'm tired of the US being called in for everyone's problems. They don't like it, let them solve it.

---------- Post added 2012-11-16 at 01:41 PM ----------

Of course the world is exactly the same as it was in WW2 right?...nothing has changed at all correct? The Japanese and the Germans would have never used the bomb in WW2 if they had the chance I suppose...

Are you really that naive?

This isn't WWII. Why people keep comparing Iran to Nazi Germany is beyond me because there is almost no correlation. Iran is closer to a mini-USSR than Nazi Germany.

[chadwix]

Keep in mind we only get to see Ahmadinejad in short clips making him look crazy like the foreign media did to bush. He was sane enough to speak at one of our top universities, think some of it maybe fabricated to evoke a response like with bush.

[cherb]

Atomic

Atomic bombs are fission bombs, nuclear bombs are all thermonuclear weapons and hydrogen bombs are fusion bombs.

Nitpicking? Nahh

Nuclear weapons include both of those subcategories. Fission + fusion bombs are both nuclear bombs.

edit-someone beat me to it.

[Rukentuts]

Keep in mind we only get to see Ahmadinejad in short clips making him look crazy like the foreign media did to bush. He was sane enough to speak at one of our top universities, think some of it maybe fabricated to evoke a response like with bush.

This was published on his own website dude.

[Beavis]

That assumes some kind of rational acting, though, doesn't it? If someone could explain exactly how these detterence models work, that would convince me otherwise of my argument.

The only conceit most models make towards rationality is the assumption that countries have both foreign policy goals and and a distaste for their countries being transformed into self-lightning glass bottomed parking lots. Beyond that, there's a fair amount of complexity in the literature, but conclusions tend to be similar.

[Sealed Shut]

I never said I am for Iran having nukes, I think no country should have them, I asked what we could do to prevent it.

We have the weaponry to drop on their facilities producing the uranium.... even the underground ones are NOT safe from our current technology.

[Laize]

Here's a source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud...22_controversy

The bolded sounds like warmongering to me.

Yeah.... Ahmadinejad is a smart and crazy man. But he holds no real political power in Iran.

The President of Iran is not analogous to the President of the United States.

The President of Iran is not only underneath the Ayatollah Khamenei, he pretty much has to ask permission to fart from The Guardian Council which is, surprisingly, comprised of 6 Islamic appointees as well as 6 secular authorities.

In short, that lunatic we see on TV shouting obscenities about America holds about as much sway in his country's foreign policy as Todd Akin holds in the role of Women's Health.

[titan972]

I never said I am for Iran having nukes, I think no country should have them, I asked what we could do to prevent it.

Well the shitty part is, not much really...short of regime change again (which won't happen). We can delay them with a strike for a little while - but I do think the best bet right now is for change to come from within (also little chance for this at the moment). There certainly aren't any easy answers, anyone who tells you there so is kidding themselves - and unfortunately right now we as the USA will have to deal with whatever choice is made - and all the public backlash that is sure to follow.

[insmek]

Just eating my chicken korma well reading the thread, isnt it weird how human love to be right. counter each other over and over to try prove they are right xD
humans are flawwed

Maybe the ones among us who do not wish to be right are the flawed ones.

[Reeve]

This isn't WWII. Why people keep comparing Iran to Nazi Germany is beyond me because there is almost no correlation. Iran is closer to a mini-USSR than Nazi Germany.

I always thought Iran was more equivalent to a miniature theocratic USA. Most of the Iranians I've known have been remarkably like Americans, much moreso than Europeans living in the US.

[Beavis]

Collective suicide doesn't matter. All the leaders have to do is push a button and hide in a cave as the bombs fall.

I don't think there's a whole lot of evidence out there that would bring you to that conclusion.

[Kraenen]

What gives us the right?

Stopping nuclear warfare, stopping nuclear proliferation.

[Drithien]

A leaked report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said...

Oh, if it is such a trustworthy source, with all those proven facts, then it has to be true!

A "leaked report"? Really? After how many "leaked reports" will some people stop trusting whatever they are told and decide to think for themselves?

And, even if some of this is true, so what? Who made anyone the boss of every country in the world? If they can do it let them, they are not the first, and at least they are not proven to develop weapons with their projects. Unlike most of their detractors on a diplomatic level, who represent countries that have nuclear weapons. If mr and ms "civilised countries" want the cease of the use of nuclear power, they can start first. The propaganda about "terrorist nation" works only on naive or brainwahsed people. Unfortunately some still exist in western societies. Fortunately not all are like that. This is just rubbish.