“Green Movement” on The Daily Caller

Political memory in the United States can be remarkably short. At the end of the Bush administration and throughout the 2008 presidential campaign, it became clear that the majority of Americans wanted U.S. domestic and foreign policies to change for the better. Weary from two wars and a near economic collapse, America’s call for change culminated with the 2008 presidential election. 52.9% of voting Americans opted for a president who openly supported an Iran policy centered on “diplomacy without preconditions” to resolve the outstanding issues that have long fueled U.S.-Iran tensions. Nearly two years after taking office, direct U.S. negotiations with Iran have been limited to four days, and a (eerily familiar and unconvincing) campaign for war has begun. How we got here is predictable: the same special interests and partisan politics that influence many U.S. foreign policies. How to avoid another unnecessary war in the Middle East requires a sober understanding of the inevitable costs to America. Three key issues stand out: (more)

While many conservatives and libertarians argue similar points of interest, they oftentimes are arguing the same message. Last night on Freedom Watch, Judge Napolitano had former CIA Operative Wayne Simmons and antiwar activist Justin Raimondo debate the Afghan War. Raimondo, a self-proclaimed libertarian, emphatically missed the points presented by Simmons. (more)

Opposition leaders in Iran have canceled large protests planned for June 12, the one-year anniversary of controversial elections that helped spawn the dissident movement in the first place. The leaders were not given the requisite permits by the government, they say, and they fear that the government would harshly crack down on them if they proceed, according to The New York Times. (more)

In the 40 years since the first Earth Day, the “Green Movement” has migrated far beyond the prevention of polluted lakes and streams and emissions from coal-burning plants to take on scientifically-shakier targets: allegedly harmful substances in food and consumer products. The goals of Earth Day celebrants now include what they call “green chemistry”—a prohibition on industrial chemicals they deem “toxic” and the embrace of ones deemed unequivocally “safe” (an unachievable goal, since any chemical, natural or synthetic, is toxic at some dose). (more)

Over the last year, the Iranian people have suffered through the fraudulent reelection of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and months of protests and recriminations by hard-line regime elements intent on preserving their grip on power.  In his 2010 Nowruz message, President Obama noted that despite his repeated attempts to engage Iran, “Iran’s leaders have shown only a clenched fist.” (more)

Vice President Biden’s visit to Israel last week was the latest in a phalanx of Obama administration officials visiting the region to attempt to resuscitate talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians and conduct a diplomatic offensive against an Iranian regime making steady progress toward a nuclear weapon. (more)

Thirty-one years after revolution brought about an Islamic Republic, Iran is on the threshold of acquiring a nuclear weapon capability—if it chooses to do so. Despite a kinder, gentler U.S. policy of engagement during the past year, there is no credible evidence that the current Iranian regime can be dissuaded from crossing that fateful point to possessing the bomb. (more)

The mounting protests in Iran leave little doubt that the Tehran regime has entered its final decade. The mass expression of public dissent expected today coincides with the day 31 years ago when the Iranian revolution was launched. The Islamist theocracy that resulted commenced a low-intensity war against the United States and our allies, which has continued to this day and could soon get worse. (more)

In this case, the calm before the storm may be contrived. (more)

During his first year in office, President Obama made several consequential decisions on a wide range of national security issues. Key among those were his decisions, bucking many in his party, to extend the timeline for withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq and to send tens of thousands of additional troops to Afghanistan to defeat al Qaeda and the Taliban. (more)