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IIRC, Iran under its ancient identity was still a "threat to the West" and engaged in wars with its neighboors.
We should be careful what we wish for: a certain amount of internationalism via pan Shi'ism might have more of a moderating influence regionally than an ultra nationalist political culture with aspirations of a Greater Persia.
While Mr. Bassi's article is important in that it defines a problem in a useful way, his general thrust might amount to simply switching one vexing problem for another; kind of like what the Arabs say about pushing sand around: it goes here, it goes there, it goes over yonder there BUT it never really goes away.
The real pressing issue at hand is how to aid and abbet a divorce between Iranian identity and aspirations at WMD proliferation reagardless of other internal, social/political psychiatric considerations and constraints.
Regards,
William
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Pharoh was pimp but now he is dead. What are you going to do today?
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