Iranian leader wrongly denied Ground Zero visit.
The Iranian leader, Ahmedinejad, was wrongly denied a Ground Zero visit so that he could lay a wreath at the site. Regardless of what we feel about his outrageous remarks, the fact of the matter is that we should have welcomed this gesture at peacemaking, no matter how small. We should have gone out of our way to accomodate his request.
This is a matter of showing goodwill towards even those whom we have had differences. And this is also a matter of common sense -- Iran is a lot more likely to do what we want if we give them what they want -- recognition of the fact that they are a regional power, along with full diplomatic recognition.
Leading Jewish nations are protesting his upcoming visit to the United Nations, rightfully so. We have every right and obligation to stand up for human rights around the world. But the fact of the matter is, as our history has shown, that we have dealt with much worse dictators in furthering our goals as a nation. For instance, we dealt with Stalin and accepted his help in getting rid of the Nazis. And Iran is in a position to help in stabilizing what was once Iraq. And Pakistan is a key ally in getting rid of Bin Laden.
Let us take this from a simple business standpoint -- dealing with unpleasant people is a fact of life in the business world; otherwise, nothing would ever get done. The same situation applies here -- we have to be able to deal with him if we are to have any chance of reducing the violence within the region that was once Iraq. And we must do much more than that -- we must convene a regional conference at which Iran and Syria are invited and discuss the future of that region. Our goal at this point is to prevent this from becoming a regional conflict.
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