The Shalom Center - War with Iran?

Obama on Israel, Palestine, Iran, etc.: Meeting with Official Jewish Leadership

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 10:09:18 -0500

Obama reaches out to Jewish leaders

By Ami Eden of the Jewish Telegraphic Association (JTA)
We've received a rough transcript that came from the Obama campaign of a
closed meeting that the candidate held Sunday in Cleveland with about 100
Jewish communal leaders. Whoever recorded the remarks was only able to get
Obama's answers, not the actual questions from the audience.

For the most part, Obama sought to reassure the audience — on Israel, Iran,
his church, his pastor, his foreign policy advisers, his religion. At the
same time, he picked a few spots to push back against some of his critics in

U. N ATOMIC AGENCY IS QUIETLY MANAGING TO DISARM IRAN

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 08:58:52 -0500

By Ray Takeyh and Joseph Cirincione

Financial Times (London)
February 27, 2008

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/06a1fa90-e4d7-11dc-a495-0000779fd2ac.html

It is a popular parlor game in Washington's corridors of power and
European chancelleries to deride Mohamed ElBaradei as a quixotic
bureaucrat determined to subvert the Western strategy of restraining
Iran's nuclear program. The latest International Atomic Energy Agency
report suggesting progress has been made by Iran is quietly disparaged by
the Bush administration as another clean pass for the rash theocracy. The
point that Mr. ElBaradei's critics miss is that he is judiciously

A PAX ON BOTH OUR HOUSES: SEEKING PEACE WITH IRAN

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:04:25 -0400

The Shalom Center began in November 2007 to bring together a broad coalition of religious leaders and enough money to publish a call for peace with Iran in the Des Moines (Iowa) Register shortly before the presidential primary there, and to win coverage of that effort in the NY Times. In May 2008, religious leaders in Columbus Ohio also published the ad there. Once again within the Bush-Cheney Administration and in the camp of one presidential candidate, some are encouraging talk about initiating or supporting a military attack on Iran. So once again, opposition counts. Here is the statement:

A PAX ON BOTH OUR HOUSES: A MULTIRELIGIOUS CALL & CAMPAIGN FOR US-IRAN PEACEMAKING

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 11:53:29 -0500

A PAX ON BOTH OUR HOUSES

In a moment when religious differences are often turned into violence and war, it is especially important to show that religiously, spiritually, and ethically rooted folk -- especially but not only Jews, Christians, and Muslims –- can reach out across the boundaries of our communities to affirm the Unity at our roots.

The statement below does that. Leaders of our traditions and communities have signed it. We invite you to join with them to sign it and to support its publication to a wide audience, by making a tax-deductible gift for presenting it broadly.

Ahmadinejad's Foray to Turkey

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 07:41:49 -0400

Alon Ben-Meir

[Dr. Ben-Meir serves as senior fellow at New York University's School of Global Affairs where he has been teaching courses on the Middle East and negotiations for 17 years, as well as himself taking part in Arab-Israeli negotiations.]

August 13, 2008 -- It is quite understandable that Israel would be deeply disappointed by Turkey's decision to invite Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for an official visit this week. In Israel's view, such a visit will only further legitimize a leader who is reviled for his denial of the Holocaust and for his repeated existential threats to the state of Israel.

Why Bush folded on Iran

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:05:14 -0400

By Juan Cole *

Salon, July 31, 2008

Pundits and diplomats nearly got whiplash from the double take they did when George W. Bush sent the No. 3 man in the State Department to sit at a table on July 19 across from an Iranian negotiator, without any preconditions. When Bush had addressed the Israeli Knesset in May, he made headlines by denouncing any negotiation with "terrorists and radicals" as "the false comfort of appeasement." What drove W. to undermine John McCain by suddenly adopting Barack Obama's foreign policy prescription on Iran?

Back in mid-July, the Geneva talks were attended by representatives of the five veto-wielding nations on the United Nations Security Council, including the U.S., along with a delegate from Germany and chief European Union negotiator Javier Solana. E.U. parleys with Tehran have been going on for years, but the presence of undersecretary of state for political affairs William Burns signaled a new seriousness to Washington's commitment to the diplomatic track. What the U.S. and its European allies were offering Iran at the Geneva meeting was termed a "freeze for freeze" deal. Iran would not attempt to improve on its rudimentary ability to enrich uranium to low levels, or go beyond running 3,000 centrifuges, in return for a pause in the spiral of economic sanctions imposed on Iran by the U.N. Security Council.

Statement Opposing Preemptive Military Action Against Iran

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:45:39 -0400

Jewish Peace Fellowship
July 4, 2008

The current Iranian government’s lack of transparent compliance with the international community’s nuclear control regime, and its president’s statements, that Israel should be “wiped from the face of the earth,” present serious challenges to world peace.

Preemptive military action, however, is an unacceptable response to these challenges.

The Jewish Peace Fellowship opposes violence in all forms, especially war, and was founded in 1941 to support the right of conscientious objection to military service.

Our objection to war is based on Jewish religious tradition, which commands us to seek peace and to pursue it (Psalms 34:15), and that shalom, the Hebrew word for peace is the Name of God and the Name of the Messiah (Tractate Derekh Eretz, Perek °∞Hashalom°±).

Pentagon Warns Against Israeli Attack on Iran

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:05:51 -0400

Says Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen:
'A Third Front ... Would Be Extremely Stressful'
By JONATHAN KARL, ABC News
July 2, 2008

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, who was in Israel over the weekend, issued a strong warning today about the dangers of a military attack on Iran.

At a Pentagon press conference, Mullen was asked, "How concerned are you ... that Israel may undertake a unilateral strike against Iran by the end of the year?"

"My strong preference, here, is to handle all of this diplomatically with the other powers of governments, ours and many others, as opposed to any kind of strike occurring," he answered. "This is a very unstable part of the world. And I don't need it to be more unstable."

The alternative to an Israeli attack on Iran

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:40:45 -0400

By Shlomo Ben-Ami and Trita Parsi

Is war between Israel and Iran inevitable? To listen to Iran's radical President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or Israel's Iranian-born transportation minister Shaul Mofaz, or even recent reports that Israel carried out a major military training mission over the Mediterranean to rehearse an attack on Iran, you might be left with that impression.

Mr. Mofaz's comments last month indicating he would attack Iran didn't help perceptions either. The immediate effect of his statement was a record increase in oil prices – giving Mofaz's Iranian nemeses a windfall of several million dollars.

Interfaith Witness for Peace in Iraq, March 7 in Washington DC

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 09:50:20 -0400

Sponsors: Olive Branch Interfaith Peace Partnership

Communities and individuals of all faith traditions and spiritualities who are committed to ending the war in Iraq are holding an interfaith witness in Washington D.C. on Friday, March 7, 2008 to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to the sacredness of human life. The world cries out for a common voice for peace from across religious traditions and paths.

TO GET DETAILED INFORMATION AND SIGN UP FOR EVENTS, PLEASE GO TO --
http://www.olivebranchinterfaith.org

THERE WILL BE FOUR MAJOR COMPONENTS OF THE MARCH 7 EVENTS:

Iran: Purim & VASHTI come in Winter-time!

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 12:12:01 -0500

The early-spring Jewish festival of Purim - rooted in, or given roots by, the Scroll of Esther -- is an expression of the same topsy-turvy view of the world that we see in Mardi Gras and other early-spring festivals of folly. The story is a satire on the stupidity and the violence of rulers.

Even though we are still in wintertime, Purim is the only way to understand what has just happened in the topsy-turvy somersault in US National Intelligence Estimates concerning Iran.

The tale of Esther is about a foolish king of Persia -- Iran! But that was when he was the Emperor of the World. Now the same folly is found in another king who wants to make Persia another province in his empire.... Who STILL wants to, even after revelations of the naked truth by the network of officials called VASHTI - Vigilant Affirmers of Security, Honor, Truth & Intelligence.

AIPAC, IRAN, & PRESIDENTIAL WAR-MAKING

Sat, 14 Apr 2007 08:51:44 -0400

On March 12, the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives voted to take out of the war spending bill a provision that would, with some exceptions, require the president to seek congressional approval before using military force in Iran.

According to Congressman David Obey, the provision was dropped because it was drawing enough opposition to endanger the whole effort for Congress to set a date for ending the Iraq War.

But why were so many Congressmembers ready to oppose an effort to uphold their own Constitutional powers against a runaway President?

On March 8, CQ Today reported that "Hawkish pro-Israel lawmakers are pushing [to strike out that provision]. The influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee also is working to keep the language out, said an aide to a pro- Israel lawmaker."

AFTER IRAQ: THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING U.S.

Sun, 11 Jun 2006 14:42:24 -0400

By Helena Cobban

** Despite the death of Zarqawi, Bush's huge gamble in Iraq has failed. As a result, the U.S. is weaker everywhere in the world.

**Salon.com & Spiegel International June 9, 2006

The Bush administration has just received two pieces of welcome news from Iraq. It learned first that a U.S. attack plane had killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the long-hunted leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, and then that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was finally able to name designees for the three security posts in his government. The new ministers were sworn in within hours.

However, the longer-term trends within Iraq remain grim for the administration. Zarqawi's killing might dent but certainly promises no quick end to the insurgency among Sunni Arabs in the west and center of Iraq.

Iran and America: Put Not Your Trust in Princes

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 14:27:46 -0400

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow

Did Iran make a peace offer to the United States in 2003? If so, how did the US respond – and why? And in any case, does it matter now?

Most Americans have absorbed from US government sources and from our conventional media two notions ---

• that a wildly hostile Iranian government has rejected all efforts at negotiation toward preventing its acquiring nuclear weapons and has threatened to destroy Israel;

• and that the US is trying hard to prevent the nuclear-weapons option, while hoping to avoid war and to work closely with other countries for a peaceful resolution.

Attacking Iran as Domestic Politics By Other Means

Sun, 23 Apr 2006 06:25:19 -0400

By Leonard Fein
In the Forward, April 21, 2006

It all sounds so depressingly familiar: We are giving diplomacy a chance, any suggestion that we are preparing for military action is "wild speculation" — but, at the same time, Iran represents a grave threat to world peace and is a haven for terrorism. Wait too long, and it will have nuclear weapons, international inspection or not. So armed intervention must be considered an option.

We have seen this movie before, quite recently. But of course, Iran is not Iraq. It is a nation with far greater resources in people and materiel. It makes no secret of its nuclear ambitions (the peaceful ones, anyway), and its current president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is a vile human being. It is not Washington's spin but his own words that condemn him.