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I also find the silence on Iran to be disconcerting. Objectivist philosopher Leonard Peikoff was the first, to my knowledge, to focus on Iran over the other sources of Islamofascism in the wake of 9-11: End States Who Sponsor Terrorism. By Leonard Peikoff, The New York Times, October 2, 2001.

[...] Most of the Mideast is ruled by thugs who would be paralyzed by an American victory over any of their neighbors. Iran, by contrast, is the only major country there ruled by zealots dedicated not to material gain (such as more wealth or territory), but to the triumph by any means, however violent, of the Muslim fundamentalist movement they brought to life. That is why Iran manufactures the most terrorists.

America's war on terrorism did not begin in September 2001. It began in November 1979. That was shortly after Ayatollah Khomeini had seized power in Iran, riding the slogan "Death to America" - and sure enough, the attacks on Americans soon began.

More on Iran: Iraq: The Wrong War. By Leonard Peikoff, January 28, 1997. Only action will destroy Iran's willingness to wage a terrorist war on the United States. Only action will put Iraq, Libya, Syria, Sudan and all other terrorist nations on notice that the time for appeasement is over. State Department accuses seven countries led by Iran of promoting terror. By Barry Schweid, AP, May 21, 2002. The U.S. State Department branded Iran the world's most active sponsor of terror Tuesday as the Islamic fundamentalist state intensified support for Palestinian militants attacking Israel. On the other hand, Libya and Sudan were taking steps "to get out of the terrorism business" and North Korea and Syria took smaller steps in that direction, but continued to host militant groups, the department said in its annual report to Congress. Official: Iran Developing Missile. AP, May 8, 2002. Iran, with an assist from Russia and other countries, is developing a long-range missile that would give it the ability to strike NATO countries in Europe, a senior administration official says. [...] Iran's missile development is proceeding hand-in-hand with efforts to develop nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, U.S. officials say. Itching to Hit Iraq. Editors, Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 5, 2002. But Saddam, for all his malevolence, is not the sole source on which the infection of international terrorism feeds. Indeed, in recent weeks, stronger cases can be made against the ruling mullahs of the theocracy of Iran as shelterers of al-Qaida and sponsors of the murderous "martyrdoms" that have left the streets of Israel and the hovels of the West Bank soaked with innocent blood.

Iran has come a long way.. I don't think they pose a threat to the United States. many have over looked the fact that after 9/11 most of the citizens of Iran felt honestly bad about what happen.. Bin Laden and his followers make up a small portion of the Islamic faith.. we should not paint all Muslims with the same brush.. It would be no less the same as saying all Democrats are pot smoking, draft dodging, womanizing, gay loving people.. (no that is just Clinton) Iran has had many advancements, and just because they have different laws or strong religious belief does not make them any worse of a culture.. I don't see the threat from Iran.. tell me where it is, show me where it is.. proof. Iraq and Korea are current threats... President Bush should have been more open minded and not rush to judgement.. you would think a President who is half Mexican would be more understanding about different cultures.. (yes Mamma Bush is Mexican)

salam

salam

In light of the current state of America... I am re-presenting the letter I wrote to you in response to your full-page advertisement in the Washington Post after 9/11.... so here goes... AMERICA AT WAR. This messsage, if published, should be in its entirety without any edition. I have been practicing Objectivism since 1968, when Leonard Peikoff was still a piker. And I still hold Objectivism as THE philosophy, and respect Ayn Rand, in spite of her shenanigans with Nathaniel Brandon. But I did not expect to see such deterioration in the thought processes of individuals in her former inner circle and especially those who were given the grave and solemn responsibility to carry on her legacy. If this article had been written by one of the Teflon Dons on Capitol Hill or in the State Department, then I would have shrugged and let it go as just so much more bilge, because it seems to have been written by someone who has lost all concept of Cause and Effect. I would have expected any individual, especially with the supposed intellectual stature of Ayn Rand's heir apparent to first question what causes an individual to resort to terrorism. Or have we forgotten Ragnar Danneskjold. Let me refresh Peikoff's memory and quote the description of an extremist and extremism: "If an uncompromising stand is to be smeared as "extremism" then that smear is directed at any devotion to values, any loyalty to principals, any profound conviction, any consistency, any steadfastness, any passion, any dedication to an unbreached inviolate truth - any man of integrity", ("Extremism" or The Art of Smearing"). And then look at history, and at 50 years of terror perpetrated on a people who were living peacefully in that part of the world until political exigencies of the "super powers" of those days caused these same people to become homeless almost overnight. I refute the claim that God gave that part of the Middle East to the "children" of Israel. He did not - the British did. And as for Iran, let's give it the perspective it deserves and state the truth which the State Department has been so frantically busy trying to keep under wraps. Jimmy Carter stood up at a banquet given by the Shah of Iran and with an absolute straight face said, "I asked Roslyn where she would like to spend her Christmas this year, and she said "Why, with the Shah and Shahbanoo of course". And then continued "We expect to see Iran continue to grow and prosper under the able leadership of the Shah". They say the camera never lies. Well on that day I saw Jimmy Taggart in the flesh. The man stood there and lied like a pro in all insincerity. And we suddenly knew with absolute certainty that this was the end of life as we knew it in Iran. Two months later America ousted the Shah. For Peikoff's information, Khomenie was an American plant. And American politicians in the State Department saw it right to bring in Khomenie and a crowbar as temporary measures until they could put a puppet in his place, who, unlike the Shah, would do their bidding without question. When Khomenie got wind of that plan, he took hostages and took the entire country hostage in the process. Now, Mr. Peikoff, when "America at War" is read in this context, it reads like just so much drivel. I suggest you read history written by unbiased historians before you so cavalierly plan to take off on any new pontifical jaunts. Oh! by the way, I am a Zoroastrian, the faith from which Judaism borrowed its tenets.