Iran in talks to join alliance against West

[Coexist]

This is a worst case scenario.

The enemies of this administration's policies becoming friends. Meeting to discuss forming what is being called an Anti-NATO Alliance "are the presidents of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, as well as the leaders of three observer countries, namely Mongolia, Iran and Pakistan."

Afghan President Hamid Karzai was an "official guest." You know, the same Karzai who gushed Freedom and spoke of working "side by side" with American soldiers.

Iran is eating this all up, courting China with LNG and oil exploration. And he isn't shy about ramping up the rhetoric. "At a press conference, Ahmadinejad sought to focus attention on the fact the United States dropped atomic bombs in Japan at the end of World War II, becoming the first and only nation to use nuclear weapons in anger."

Great. While we sit and wait for Iran's response to our latest proposal, Ahmadinejad cozies up to Russia at this summit. Maybe they aren't asking them to enrich their uranium anymore. Maybe they're discussing all those loose nukes, which John Kerry tried to make an issue of in the 2004 election. Could they end up in the hands of those we are desperately trying to keep them out of? Russia is publicly selling Iran arms already. Who knows what is going on under the surface.

And we are impotent, because our currency in the world as Great Democracy has been reduced by this administration into a pale shadow of its former self. What about our 'bargaining power'? I don't know, do we have any, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is sponsored by our biggest Creditor. The people who could cripple our economy.

Is our cowboy foreign policy going to lead us into another cold war? A nuclear showdown? I guess all of our gung-ho pissing about nuking Iran didn't scare them as much as they'd hoped. Lets just hope its not the death of us.

[ThomCat]

1. Bush is pushing the whole world to take sides.

He's setting us up for WW3, and we're going to be Germany.

[H2O Man]

3. It's interesting

to consider how the world felt about the US five years ago, and compare it to now. Thanks, George and Dick.

[leftchick]

5. yeah

thank a lot! :cry:

[The Straight Story]

6. IMHO those same countries did not like us then

and never will.

What do you think will make them love us?

[Coexist]

7. Not liking is not the same as hating

IMHO.

[The Straight Story]

9. Ok...when have they liked or loved us?

We can't please the whole world, no country can.

Hate has been a part of mankind as long as we have been around, and I am sure some countries have hated us a long time. How do we change hate into like or love? What do we have to give up or change?

[Coexist]

10. But they never hated us enough to band together like this

Afghanistan used to hate the USSR.

But that aside - the link in my post shows our declining support amongst countries that used be strong allies.

Countries that could band together with us against such an alliance in times of trouble.

[Toots]

22. There is no neutral ground "Either you are with us or against us"

According to the GOP. So now more than half the world is against us when in fact they would wish to just be neutral and deal with their own problems...

[BayCityProgressive]

8. I agree

of course these countries band together. they are all anti-democratic human rights violating hell holes. Of course they hate Western Europe, Israel, Australia, The US and Canada. While far from perfect we have human rights standards and democracy that are poison to these corrupt regimes.

[atreides1]

11. Our Standards have been lowered, or have you been asleep?

"of course these countries band together. they are all anti-democratic human rights violating hell holes."

Maybe they are but this administration gave the Chinese a free pass when they gave it favored nation status, and most of the former Russian allies are now or have been our allies in the "war on Terror", and Pakistan is our friend, and let's not forget that Mongolia is part of the Coalition in Iraq. These countries are not stupid, they're just getting prepared for when the US in an act of utter and complete stupidity, and unless things change it will happen, launches an attack on one of them.



"Of course they hate Western Europe, Israel, Australia, The US and Canada.
While far from perfect we have human rights standards and democracy that are poison to these corrupt regimes."

I would put the US and Israel in the question mark section, especially when it comes to the human rights and democracy discussion. Australia is just walking behind the US like some annoying kid brother, which leaves Western Europe who still seems to have high standards when it comes to the question of human rights and democracy.

Didn't you hear that a federal judge ruled that the US can lock people up just for what they look like? How about the NSA phone mining? Guantanamo Bay? Abu Ghraib? Fallujah? Haditha? and let's not forget the good old Patriot Act version 2.0

No the US hasn't reached the level that China and Russia have, but we are sure playing catch up!!!!

[BayCityProgressive]

14. I agree with

your assessment that we have been going down the shit hole really fast. That is why I hope we retake one or both of the houses in 06. As you stated though, we still haven't reached the pit that most of these nations are in. I am sure Bush wouldn't mind taking us there though. As for Israel, I disagree with many of it's policies but I do support them and that is a long long long discussion for I am sure hundreds of other threads! :-)

[Patchuli]

19. Unfortunately, our own country is

running some "anti-democratic human rights violating hell holes" types of prisons. We've been made no better than those we always preached at in the past for civil rights violations. The biggest difference is that America's done it on a big grand scale horrendous fashion attacking and occupying Iraq...

[lovuian]

2. WWIII is coming and they know it

Iran is scrambling for alliances to stop Bush's timetable!!!
:nuke:

[peacebird]

4. Now this is just NOT a good development......

Not that I blame them, but.....


sigh.

The only potential upside to this would be if it put enought pressure on * to prevent the bombing of Iran....

[Kahuna]

12. Make no mistake about it. The cold war is back on.

The stupidest words ever uttered by the chimp was, "Axis of evil." He put our potential enemies on notice. Then when he attacked Iraq, a country that posed us no threat and never did us any harm, he put them on notice again. What a F**king fool.

[stevietheman]

13. Whatever keeps the Sinister Bush Regime in check is something...

I am for. If an anti-NATO alliance is what is needed to keep Bush from further naked aggression, so be it. Sounds good to me.

[Postman]

15. If you were the Prez of Iran, what would you do?

I can't blame the man. I don't agree with some of his more outlandish rhetoric but he'd be stupid not to align himself with military powers that could kick the shit out of George W. Bush.

[NNN0LHI]

16. Bush's "your either with us or against us" was a really stupid thing to say

If someone doesn't want to be with us I would rather have them being neutral than being against us.

Don

[Coexist]

17. very well put.

[Nothing Without Hope]

18. K & R. Insane, murderous megalomania has consequences. n/t

[OneBlueSky]

20. message to BushCo . . . "Back Off!" . . . n/t

.

[Coexist]

21. exactly

who forms alliances and counter-alliances when everything is peachy-keen