Was watching BookTV last nite........

Scott Ritter and Seymour Hirsh were having a talk to what was obviously a very simpathetic audience. Any way Mr. Ritter said:

The true power in Iran rests with the Supreme Leader. The Supreme Leader is the Ayatollah Khamenei. He is supported by an organization called the Guardian Council. Then there’s another group called the Expediency Council. These are the people that control the military, the police, the nuclear program, all the instruments of power. And not only has the Supreme Leader issued a fatwa that says that nuclear weapons are not compatible with Islamic law, with the Shia belief system that he is responsible, in 2003 he (Ayatollah Khamenei) actually reached out to the Bush administration via the Swiss embassy and said, “Look, we would like to normalize relations with the United States. We’d like to initiate a process that leads to a peace treaty between Israel and Iran.” Get this, Israel and Iran. He’s not saying, “We want to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.” He is saying, “We want peace with Israel.” And they were willing to put their nuclear program on the table.

I've enhanced the part which I hadn't heard before. In fact on last evenings program Mr. Ritter went a bit further and said that Iran dislikes the Arabs more intesnsely than Isreal.

Has anyone else told of this incident other than Mr. Ritter? I would just like some other verification. Mr. Ritter's dislike of the current administration is well known and a second or better yet third confirmation of the incident is important. Important to me at least.

[ASWnut101]

I hate CSPAN. Its SOOOO boring.

[Ducimus]

Responding to OP.

In regards to irans government, you might find this intresting:

Iran, who holds the power?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/h...ml/default.stm
Rather intresting blend of church and state, where the church has the final authority.

Now as for Ritter's claims. I can't verify that. WIth media, i think everyone has an agenda. Some overtly, some covertly, but theres an influence into the what, and how of news reporting somewhere.

There is some behavior eveidence with Bush which would lend credence to Ritter. One need look no farther then his Axis of evil speech and his handling of North Korea when he took office. The short of it is, he doesnt "deal with evil", and if it was something Clinton started, he stopped it. So the agreed framework fell apart even further, and events spiraled into what we have today as a result of his handling (or lackther of) of the situation. What im saying is, he could have concievably handled Iran, in the exact same fashion. It would be in character for him having done so.

Is there some big media/government conspiracy cover up at work here? Id venture to, at the most, say special intrest groups manipulate news outlets, but i can't bring myself to say the goverment has any direct influence.

For intresting reading however, which seems credible (if not slighly opinionated), that provides supporting evidence (which is often very compelling), i'd present this link:
http://www.slate.com/?id=2077581&qp=26450

You'll find alot of critizism there, but none(or little) of it unsubstantiated. Somewhere in their you'll find an article on just about any of the major issues, past or present. From Iran, to Iraq, to Army recuritment standards, etc. Scroll back a few pages, some of the articles you might find intriguing. Espeicaly since this guy gives links, occasionaly to goverment produced PDF files in obscure (but public) .gov addresses you wouldnt otherwise normally find.

[The Avon Lady]

Originally Posted by waste gate

And not only has the Supreme Leader issued a fatwa that says that nuclear weapons are not compatible with Islamic law, with the Shia belief system that he is responsible

War of the fatwas. Who you gonna wager on, gringo?

Don't put your trust into publicized Fatwas anyway:

"Narrated Jabir bin 'Abdullah: The Prophet said, "War is deceit."
- Sahih Bukhari, Book 52: Fighting for the Cause of Allah (Jihaad), Volume 4, Book 52, Number 269

in 2003 he (Ayatollah Khamenei) actually reached out to the Bush administration via the Swiss embassy and said, “Look, we would like to normalize relations with the United States. We’d like to initiate a process that leads to a peace treaty between Israel and Iran.” Get this, Israel and Iran. He’s not saying, “We want to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.” He is saying, “We want peace with Israel.” And they were willing to put their nuclear program on the table.

It's an old story:



White is black and up is down.