Is There Some Rule That the U.S. Must F_ck Up Everything?

Sure there is. It's Rule 836(b) - You play ball with me, and I'll stick the bat right up your A$$. That's the rule.

After months of multinational negotiations, a deal was struck whereby Iran would hand over its "in progress" nuclear weapons programme and materials. That deal was reached by the P5+1. The five permanent members of the UN Security Council - China, France, Russia, the UK and the US - plus Germany.

They struck a deal for the removal of punishing sanctions against Iran. The Iranians met the P5+1's conditions, deal done, sanctions off. There was not much America could do about that.

What America could do was slap on new, unilateral sanctions for, I don't know - oh yeah, missile technology. Let's use that. Missiles - that'll do it.

Those Americans, they're such pranksters.

State Department officials kind of hoped Obama wouldn't mention the new sanctions until after Iran released three Americans it was holding but he didn't and the Iranians still released the Americans.



Now, let's unpack all that. Sanctions on Iran for human rights violations but not the Saudis or the Gulf States, check. Sanctions on Iran for being a 'state sponsor of terrorism' but not the Saudis or the Gulf States, check. Sanctions on Iran for supporting some nasty groups in Syria, the government, but not the Saudis or the Gulf States for supporting al Nusra and ISIS, check.

I'm sure America would love to hammer Iran with sanctions for the embassy bombings, the attack on the USS Cole, the 9/11 attacks, supporting murderous Sunni Islamist terrorists, the attacks on Madrid, London and Paris only Iran had nothing to do with any of that. That skulduggery is entirely the work of the Saudis and Gulf State princes, emirs and sheikhs. Well, anyway, America must have hammered them with sanctions, right? No? None?

Not for nothing do the people of the world, in survey upon survey, finger the United States as the greatest threat to world peace.

If only Obama's missile sanctions meant something but they don't. They only target a couple of companies and a handful of individuals and they'll have no practical effect on Iran except, perhaps, to steer it into the arms of America's rivals. This gimmick will help Obama counter Republican critics in Congress, perhaps smooth tensions a bit with the Saudis, but it's window dressing - except to the rest of the world where it matters.