Open Letter to Senator Schumer

Dear Senator Schumer, I was more than dismayed to read that you intended to vote against the Iran treaty.

I understand that you did much research, and spoke to many people in the Administration, as well as opponents of the treaty; I understand that you considered the position of the Israeli government, as well as our own. I even understand that you considered the concerns of your New York constituents, of which I am one.

However, your position on the treaty is extremely short-sighted. It is making the perfect enemy of the good.

Without American participation in the treaty’s enforcement, we will have the worst of alternatives: the treaty will likely still be ratified by our partners (the P4 + 1), we will still have United Nations approval; the sanctions of our partners will be lifted; the US and Israel will stand alone against it.

Or, the treaty will not pass internationally, and we will inevitably have war.

We will not get a “better” treaty. The kind of inspections regime that opponents appear to be proposing would only be agreed to by a nation that has been militarily destroyed, as was Germany and Japan in WWII.

Since we are already over-extended militarily, since we will NOT have international support if we unilaterally attack Iran, any military attempt to stop Iran from going nuclear will inevitably be counter-productive: it will push Iran into building nuclear weapons as fast as they can; it will not do more than delay nuclearization.

By contrast, the treaty would at least delay possible nuclear weapons for ten to fifteen years, and in that time Iran could become a more responsible and moderate nation, since it would have more interchange with the rest of the world. Like many other nations, it could forego developing nuclear weapons (as it claims to have done already).

Further, war with Iran would be many times worse than our ill-advised adventures into Vietnam and Iraq. Iran is several times the size of Iraq; it has an effective political system that would mobilize its population in a way that Iraq was unable to do; war with Iran would probably enable Islamic State to make greater conquests, since Iran is one of its main opponents in the region. War would radically increase the chaos in the Middle East—chaos for which we are already responsible for a good part. The US could bankrupt itself in such a war.

War would also eliminate any chance for the kind of progressive domestic policies that you and I both favor.

To oppose the treaty will ultimately not help Israel, either. It will weaken the US, and drive Iran into a much more belligerent policy towards Israel; it is now rhetorically hostile, but has been tacitly supportive of US actions against Islamic State and could become more cooperative, not less, if the US supports the treaty. Further, the unhinged ravings of former Iranian President, Ahmadinejad, do not represent current Iranian policy, nor the majority of the Iranian people, as witnessed by its more moderate current government. To oppose the treaty would strengthen, not weaken those elements in Iran most inimical to Israel and the US.

To oppose any reasonable treaty on the grounds that peace with Iran will benefit it economically, is to advocate the pauperization of a nation that could play a positive role in the region if it were welcomed and if it benefitted from full participation on the world stage.

It may be true that the treaty will not prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons in 15 years, but it is our best chance at prevention, especially if Iran, as a full participant in regional and world affairs is led to realize that nuclear weapons would not be in its interest.

If you vote against the treaty, I for one will do all I can to oppose your re-election to the Senate, since, to me, such a position is antithetical to the progressive politics that you claim to stand for.

Sincerely



Douglas C. Smyth