Regarding Edith Everett’s online Opinion piece, “Why The Iran Deal Makes Sense,” easy choices are hard to come by, and thus one often has to simplify reality in order to justify one choice or another.
Edith Everett has done just that.
She portrays Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu as the eternal warmonger, whereas President Obama’s compromises with Iran are the only viable alternative to war. One envies the clarity of the argument. However, the same pragmatic reasoning had allowed [Syrian President Bashar] Assad to get away with gassing his own citizens — and still qualify as a negotiating partner in subsequent dealing about chemical weapons.
Using force [against Iran] has its terrible consequences. Compromising, however, which always comes with sweat and pacifying justifications, can be as dangerous at times.
Ultimately, what do we know, from the story of Pesach just celebrated? We know that negotiation took place with a nation that vowed to destroy Israel [and Pharaoh was not deterred by threats]. We know, by historical precedents, that we should believe it when people to destroy us say — they really mean it.
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