[oldembed src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9Bj9UCyOlFI?rel=0" width="425" height="239" resize="1" fid="21"]
Over at WhoWhatWhy.com, Christian Stork has a thorough analysis debunking the most common myths propagated about the West's nuclear stand-off with Iran. It's all so familiar, isn't it? I know if I think really hard, I can figure it out. Oh, wait - it's just like the buildup to both wars in Iraq! And of course both times, the media did their best stenography impression.
That's why stories like this are so important. In his "Idiot's Guide to Iran and the Bomb," Stork lists 8 important lessons for all people to keep in mind when surveying the media landscape around Iran's nuclear program.
What he has to say will hardly be news for many C&L readers, but this should be required reading for anyone concerned about the future of Middle East policy. The first lesson taught, with exhaustive documentation, is that Iran is not building nuclear weapons. Considering how hard the mainstream media is working to convince us otherwise, it might be hard to grasp. But that's why stories like this tutorial are needed. Click here to see the rest of what Stork calls his "introductory course in intellectual self-defense":
Lesson #1: Iran is not building nuclear weapons National Intelligence Estimate: “We judge with high confidence that in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program.”
(2007 National Intelligence Estimate Iran: Nuclear Intentions and Capabilities; November 2007)“Several senior Israeli officials who spoke in recent days to The Associated Press said Israel has come around to the U.S. view that no final decision to build a bomb has been made by Iran.” (Associated Press, “Israel shifts views on Iran”; March 18, 2012)
The 2011 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), a synthesized compilation of data evaluated by America’s 17 intelligence agencies, declared that there were no serious revisions to the controversial (for war hawks) 2007 NIE—which stated Iran stopped its nuclear weapons program in 2003. While the 2011 estimate did include updated progress on Iran’s civilian nuclear program, such as an increased number of operative centrifuges, it still could not muster any evidence to indicate the program was being weaponized.These findings echo reports from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has also concluded that Iran is not building nuclear weapons. The IAEA accounts are typically pored over for the slightest hint of ambiguity or malevolence, which are then promulgated as the most important takeaways in Western news summaries.
As we like to say, go read the rest.
