Response to: Knowledge is power.: Yes to Iran Nuclear Deal

     The situation concerning Iran and the nuclear research and development it is undertaking is dubious at a minimum and worthy of attention. The blog states the negotiations in progress, with Iran and a coalition of international governments, should be accomplished and this is true. Delaying a treaty or some other political detente is pernicious to the Iranian people and the world if not the region. The main instrument in pressuring Iran comes in the form of sanctions which trickle down hardships upon the people. An extreme example of this is air quality and pollution increasing drastically after sanctions went into effect. Unfortunately the common people have no choice or recourse to improve their situations. The Iranian government controls the country from media, to internet, to elections, and activism.

    As the blogger stated one of the concerns is if Iran will "cheat" in its responsibilities. What should be considered is that if Iran were to break promise there are methods to know this scientifically, intelligence wise, and militarily. The science required to enrich uranium and the infrastructure needed is beyond this discussion but Iran definitely needs help and time to do this.

     Second the IAEA is adept at inspecting for compliance and violations. Though they do not have policing or enforcement authority they are able to inform the international authorities of problems when they arise. If for some reason Iran does not allow the inspectors to conduct their duties, red flags will appear and Iran will have to deal with possible sanctions and other recourse.

     Third Israel and the US Republican Congressmen are attempting to incite discord. To the benefit of the negotiations Israel continues to sour relations with the US though this is minor. The Republicans are seen in a negative light for this and other political maneuvers they employ, but it has not stopped negotiations. In the grand scheme of things both of these parties probably realize that Iran can be better controlled and persuaded if they are brought into the international "fold."  

     What should be understood is that it is in the benefit of Iran to strike a deal. It is isolated economically and politically from the rest of the world. If it came down to it, military action could be taken to stop Iran from building a nuclear device and that is always an option everyone knows.

The Military

The US military's capabilities are nearly incomparable to the combined might of most if not all the militarizes of the world. Spending figures alone place the US well above the expenditures of the next few countries added together. Obviously gutting the budget of the military would damage the country and its ability to defend itself. In addition the budget of the military is not the largest expense percentage wise of the gross domestic product of the US. However the expanse of the military physically, geographically, and economically is troubling. The US has built bases in many places across the world and continues to create more and more. The size and numbers of military personnel and equipment are also increasing quickly. These two result in large dollar figures steadily moving upward and projected to increase. An idea to change this should be simple but nontraditional. The US should eliminate nearly all bases throughout the world leaving as few as possible. Many bases are sources of problems for host countries and require funds to maintain. The US should also limit the increase in military spending to a specific percentage level and match the increase in funding to increases in funding to other areas, personally NASA, FDA, or NIH. Many areas in the government are lacking adequate funding or the funds to accomplish new research or development. The US should also consider consolidating the military branches and refocusing foreign policy to more peaceful ideas. Undoubtedly this will take time and effort but something needs to be done to fix as many areas of the government as possible soon.