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POPSProtests flare in Iran's capital .... "....opposition protesters warned the Obama administration -- which is seeking to engage Iran to defuse a confrontation over Tehran's nuclear program -- that now's not the time for a deal." Hmmm....and this: "...Protesters chanted, "Death to the dictator" and "Russia is the den of espionage,".....
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POPSHard to Imagine, Australia Brings Israel, Iran Together of a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Middle East. Contact between Israeli and Iranian officials is sporadic and only takes place at international forums - no formal meetings between the two countries have occurred since the 1979 Iranian revolution. Officials from Egypt, Jordan, Turkey and other regional countries also took part in the three-day meeting and it is believed the talks floated an idea for a further regional conference - possibly hosted by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon - to outline the broad aims of a treaty to create a Middle East nuclear-free zone. Similar ideas have stalled in the past over the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict and questions of security guarantees for Israel. But last month's talks in Egypt attempted to skirt such obstacles by focusing on proposals to safeguard any fissile material in the region that could potentially be used for nuclear weapons.
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POPSRussia Refuses Call For Tougher Sanctions On Iran, They Would Be “Counterproductive”
President Barack Obama " who visited Russia in July " has vowed to “reset” U.S.-Russia relations. Beyond Iran, Lavrov said U.S. and Russia negotiators have made “considerable” progress toward reaching agreement on a new strategic arms treaty. The 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START, expires in December and negotiators have been racing to reach agreement on a successor. The two diplomats also discussed possible cooperation on missile defense following Obama’s decision not to proceed with Bush-administration plans to base such a system in eastern Europe. Russia has welcomed Obama’s new approach, but has said it was eager for more detailed information. Clinton said the U.S. would be as transparent as possible. “We want to ensure that every question that the Russian military or Russian government asks is answered,” she said, calling missile defense “another area for deep cooperation between our countries.”
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POPSIs Israel Assassinating Iran Nuclear Scientists? "Disruption is designed to slow progress on the program, done in such a way that they don't realize what's happening. You are never going to stop it," a former CIA officer on Iran was quoted as saying. "The goal is delay, delay, delay until you can come up with some other solution or approach," he added. "We certainly don't want the current Iranian government to have those weapons. It's a good policy, short of taking them out militarily, which probably carries unacceptable risks."
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POPSIAEA Director: "[Nuclear] Israel No. 1 Threat to Middle East" Bingo! Someone with weight finally said it, and while inspecting Iran's new nuclear facility. Now let's see if US media publishes and broadcasts this or not. (I bet not). This is a headline story! "Israel is the number one threat to the Middle East given the nuclear arms it possesses," ElBaradei was quoted as saying.
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POPSUN's El Baradei: 'Israel Is Number One Threat to Middle East' "the Tel Aviv regime has refused to allow inspections into its nuclear installations for 30 years" article continues.. ElBaradei arrived in Iran Saturday for talks with Iranian officials over Tehran's nuclear program. Leaders of the United States, France and Britain have condemned Iran's alleged deception to the international community involving covert activities in its new underground nuclear site. Last month, Iran confirmed that it is building a new nuclear fuel enrichment plant near its northwestern city of Qom. In reaction, the IAEA asked Tehran to provide detailed information and access to the new nuclear facility as soon as possible. On Sunday, ElBaradei said the UN nuclear watchdog would inspect Iran's new uranium plant near Qom on Oct. 25.
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POPSElBaradei says nuclear Israel #1 threat to Mideast report AT LAST...the Director General has unmasked himself. It's not about Iran...it's about Israel!!! I can imagine the "talks" he & Iran's mega-leader will have. "condemned Iran's alleged deception"?? It's been known for years. My jaw drops at the attempts these people go to to dupe and mislead people.
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POPSThe Return of the Iran-Contrarians A retired Central Intelligence Agency official has confirmed to the Senate Intelligence Committee that on the secret mission to Teheran last May, Robert C. McFarlane and his party carried a Bible with a handwritten verse from President Reagan for Iranian leaders. According to a person who has read the committee's draft report, the retired C.I.A. official, George W. Cave, an Iran expert who was part of the mission, said the group had 10 falsified passports, believed to be Irish, and a key-shaped cake to symbolize the anticipated ''opening'' to Iran.
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POPSExclusive: IAEA letter thanks Iran over notification: a year before required!! It seems that Iran has not only met its obligations, but exceeded them. "To ensure that appropriate safeguard measures are put in place, I would appreciate receiving, in accordance with Iran's Safeguards Agreement, further information with respect to the name and location of the pilot enrichment facility, the current status of its construction and plans for the introduction of nuclear material into the facility," continued the IAEA letter, signed by Herman Nackaerts, Director of IAEA's Division Of Operations Department Of Safeguards. "We kindly request that this information, along with the other information detailed in the attached design information questionnaire, be provided to the Agency as soon as possible. The Agency would also appreciate being given access to the facility as soon as possible."
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POPSIran's "Secret" Nukes "But the U.S. has known of the facility's existence "for several years" through intelligence developed by U.S., French and British agencies, a senior White House official said. Obama decided to gather allies to talk publicly on Friday about their view of the project so as not to let Iran have the only word, officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to let the statements from Obama and the leaders remain the focus. The plant would be about the right size to enrich enough uranium to produce one or two bombs a year, but inspectors must get inside to know what is actually going on, the official said. The three leaders hoped the disclosure would increase pressure on the global community to impose new sanctions on Iran if it refuses to stop its nuclear program."
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POPSThe Long Retreat ~ Part I by Mark Steyn to it, perhaps not publicly (just as the US agreement to remove its nuclear missiles from Turkey was not make public during the Cuban Missile Crisis). The Obama Administration's diplomatic strategy is, I believe, wise and comprehensive"but it needs to show more than public concessions over time. A few diplomatic victories wouldn't hurt. Golly. We know, thanks to Jimmy Carter, Joe Klein, and many others, that we critics of President Obama’s health-care policy are by definition racist. Has criticism of Obama’s foreign policy also been deemed racist? Because one can certainly detect the first faint seeds of doubt germinating in dear old Joe’s soon-to-be-racist breast: The Obama administration “needs to show more than public concessions over time” " because otherwise the entire planet may get the vague impression that that’s all there is . Especially if your preemptive capitulations are as felicitously timed as the missile-defense announcement, stiffing the Poles . .
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POPSNewsweek: US Intelligence Finds no Evidence of Iranian N-Weapons Program 
The other news is about so-called suppressed documents in the files at the International Atomic Energy Agency, which are alleged to show a nuclear weapons research program. Gareth Porter argues convincingly that the reason that the IAEA never took the documents seriously is that there is every reason to think they are forgeries, perhaps by the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) political cult, which wants to have the US overthrow the clerical regime in Tehran so that MEK can take over the country. As for the Western press leaks that Iran now has enough nuclear material to make a bomb or now has the technical ability to make a bomb, both are nonsense. You need to enrich uranium to 90% to make a bomb. Iran claims to be able to enrich to 4% and a lot of observers think that is an exaggeration. So ipso facto Iran cannot possibly have produced enough fissile material for a bomb. Moreover, you need to have a weapons program trying to enrich to 90% to produce a bomb, which Iran does not have, from ev
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POPSIran Cooperating on Nukes: U.S. Says No. Israel, U.S., France and other Western powers continue to dispute any reports than Iran is cooperating with the IAEA. While Israel has hundreds of illegal nuclear weapons and refuses to reveal any info about it, not a signatory to the nuclear Non_Proliferation Treaty....it wants to lead us into another war based on lies to a nation that has signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and has cooperated with the IAEA every step of the way for many years. But our corrosive and toxic news would have us believe otherwise. The old saying "fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me," comes to mind.
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POPSLA Times: Iran's nuclear aspirations threaten the world "But they're wrong, just as they have been from the start. Indeed, there are plenty of reasons to be skeptical about sticking to engagement. The main one is that it has already been tried -- and utterly failed. Iran has consistently used the West's willingness to engage as a delaying tactic, a smoke screen behind which Iran's nuclear program has continued undeterred and, in many cases, undetected."
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POPSJohn Bolton Expects Israel To Take Iranian Matters Into It’s Own Hands He vaguely promises to offer the country the carrot of diplomacy"followed by an empty threat of sanctions down the road if Iran does not comply with the U.S.’s requests. This is precisely the European Union’s approach, which has failed for over six years. There’s no reason Iran would suddenly now bow to Mr. Obama’s diplomatic efforts, especially after its embarrassing election in June. Under the worst-case scenario, Iran will continue improving its nuclear facilities and Mr. Obama will become the first U.S. president to tie the issue of Israel’s nuclear capabilities into negotiations about Iran’s. Israel understands that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s recent commitment to extend the U.S. “defense umbrella” to Israel is not a guarantee of nuclear retaliation, and that it is wholly insufficient to deter Iran from obliterating Israel if it so decides. In fact, Mrs. Clinton’s comment tacitly concedes that Iran will acquire nuclear weapons, exactly the wrong message.
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POPSU.S. Drive For Middle East Peace Gathers Pace 
"That is our objective, and it is to that which we have committed ourselves fully." Mitchell earlier was in Damascus, where he took another step toward bringing Syria in from the cold. Speaking after talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Mitchell said restarting peace talks between Syria and Israel is a "near-term goal." In Washington, a White House spokesman said the Obama administration is moving to relieve the pressure of U.S. economic sanctions on Syria. Pressure On Iran Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Robert Gates had talks with Jordan's King Abdullah about the perceived threat of Iran's alleged nuclear-arms program. Iran is emerging as one of the biggest obstacles to a Mideast settlement, in that Israel says there is no point reaching a peace deal with the Palestinians until the question of a nuclear Iran is resolved. After talks with the king, Gates warned Iran that Washington would seek tough new sanctions unless Tehran responded to its invitation to a dialog
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POPSIran threatens to target Israel’s nuclear sites Just like north korea. Like school yard bullies that tough talk scares everybody. One of these day's your mouth's are going to deal out a hand your ass's can't back up. Would only take swift decisive sweep over each country to wipe out all military capabilities. Only thing holding us and everybody else back is the fact there would also be some civilian causalities. But your well aware of that, thats why hide behind women and children.
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POPSHard-Line Force Extends Grip Over a Splintered Iran “It is not a theocracy anymore,” said Rasool Nafisi, an expert in Iranian affairs and a co-author of an exhaustive study of the corps for the RAND Corporation. “It is a regular military security government with a facade of a Shiite clerical system.” The corps has become a vast military-based conglomerate, with control of Iran’s missile batteries, oversight of its nuclear program and a multibillion-dollar business empire reaching into nearly every sector of the economy. It runs laser eye-surgery clinics, manufactures cars, builds roads and bridges, develops gas and oil fields and controls black-market smuggling, experts say. Its fortune and its sense of entitlement have reportedly grown under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Since 2005, when he took office, companies affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards have been awarded more than 750 government contracts in construction and oil and gas projects, Iranian press reports document.
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POPSThe Jig Is Up Mousavi wasn’t about to give up Iran’s nuclear program either. But the fact that engagement is now so patently absurd even to the left blogosphere should give the Obama team pause. What are they going to do now? So perhaps it was not George Bush’s “fault” that we couldn’t “get along” with Iran. Any American president who declines to countenance the regime’s thuggish behavior becomes the object of their scorn. There is no “engagement” without forfeiting our conscience. And the notion that Ahmadinejad and his mullah patrons would give up their nuclear program in response to some charm offensive from the president is now revealed to be utter drivel. If Obama can’t rally world opinion now — when the nature and intentions of the regime are so clear — it is hard to see when he will ever be able to do so. After all, who now thinks we can do “business” with the mullahs and/or learn to live with a nuclear-armed despotic regime?
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POPSAdministration Overture to Khamenei Ridiculed in Sermon and laid out the prospect of "cooperation in regional and bilateral relations" and a resolution of the dispute over Iran's nuclear program. EXCLUSIVE: U.S. contacted Iran's ayatollah before election The letter was sent before the election, whose outcome - delivering a supposed landslide to incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - has touched off the biggest anti-government protests in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The Obama administration, while criticizing a violent crackdown on demonstrators by Iranian security forces, has said that it will continue efforts to engage the Iranian government about its nuclear program and other issues touching on U.S. national security.
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POPSPeople Power! SILENCE is complicity. Our president’s refusal to take a forthright moral stand on the side of the Iranian freedom marchers is read in Tehran as a blank check for the current regime. The fundamentalist junta has begun arresting opposition figures, with regime mouthpieces raising the prospect of the death penalty. Inevitably, there are claims that dissidents have been “hoarding weapons and explosives.” Foreign media reps are under house arrest. Cellphone frequencies are jammed. Students are killed and the killings disavowed. And our president is “troubled,” but doesn’t believe we should “meddle” in Iran’s internal affairs. (Meddling in Israel’s domestic affairs is just fine, though.) We just turned our backs on freedom. Again. … For decades, Washington policymakers from both parties have prodded Iranians to throw off their shackles. Last Friday, millions of Iranians stood up. And we’re standing down. That isn’t diplomacy. It’s treachery
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POPSIs North Korea acting on behalf of Iran? Though this issue is certainly gaining some attention in the news, it seems to me that people are becoming complacent about this type of stuff...kind of shrugging our shoulders as this continues to heat up.
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POPSGOP in 2007: CIA "Misleading," an "Anti-Bush Cabal" Behind a "Coup d'Etat" Among Speaker Pelosi's interlocutors now is former Intelligence Committee chairman, Republican Pete Hoekstra (R-MI). But as ThinkProgress detailed, years before he claimed Pelosi was "blaming the CIA," Hoekstra blasted "an intelligence community that covers up what it does and then lies to Congress." And when it came to the 2007 NIE which asserted Tehran halted its nuclear program in 2003, Hoekstra insisted the agency was holding back: Similarly, in 2007, Hoekstra described a closed-door briefing by representatives from the intelligence community (including CIA) on the National Intelligence Estimate of Iran's nuclear capability, saying that the members "didn't find forthcoming."
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POPSStupid Iranians Keep taunting.......Don't be surprised to wake up some day your country turned into a sheet of glass. Remember Hitler ?
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POPSIsrael Puts Iran Issue Ahead of Palestinians Or....take care of Iran and then we'll talk. Good job, Bibi. However, Obama will not do squat about Iran and it's arming, financing of Hezbollah & Hamas or it's nuclear program. So, stalemate continues.
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POPSDirector For Future Terrorism Project on Obama's Iran Message Washington wants to engage Iran on the ground of stopping the military nuclear program and ceasing support to Hezbollah and Hamas, while Tehran considers these matters as a no-go area of concession. In an interview with Beirut-based NBN TV this afternoon I argued that this statement by Obama may be an opportunity for the Iranian decision-makers to consider a u-turn on strategic matters, but the fact is that the regime feels it has the upper hand everywhere in the Middle East. Why would they make concessions if their perception is that the US is already withdrawing from Iraq, is requesting their help in Afghanistan and is not committed to support democracy in Iran?
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