JFGO statement namby-pamby, while Iran plays us for fools

Dear Editor:

I was not surprised to read the position statement by the JFGO published in the Heritage last week. In my opinion, it basically is said nothing. While it mentioned some concerns about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), there was no definitive statement either in favor of or against the implementation of the action plan. The fear of offending anyone seems to have been the primary objective. After searching what other Federations or Jewish communities stands were, I found the JFGO’s stand to be a namby-pamby, neither here nor there, warm-milk toast response at best.

The fact that the Iranian leadership still calls for the destruction of Israel is by itself, enough to vilify this agreement. There have been numerous statements by others much more knowledgeable than I, concerning the “trust factor,” the replay of Chamberlain’s “ Peace in our time” speech in 1940. This document leaves a lot to be desired in terms of outside inspections for compliance. This is a win for Iran. It is strange that most comments here in the U.S., both pro and con generally are related to our political parties-Democratic or Republican. Very little concern for Israel’s security and continued existence seems to be taken into account by those who are strongly in favor of the implementation of the JCPOA.

I have looked at the 159-page proposal. Hidden in there under the heading of Dispute Resolution Mechanism-paragraph 36 is the means by which Iran can easily negate the whole JCPOA. All that has to be done is a claim of noncompliance by Iran to get the process going. Just imagine after the sanctions are lifted, Iran gets back all of the trade that has been missing. They receive all of the assets from frozen foreign accounts. They export oil. They do billions and billions of dollars worth of business with the EU, which certainly needs the business. The Iranian government again is flush with cash. Now what? They cry foul! The EU, the U.S. are not keeping their part of the agreement. It is no longer valid. We have mediation at the UN. Do you really think the EU countries will allow this agreement to continue as it stands? Do you thing the UN Security Council will revert back to the way it was with the economic sanctions? It’s not “gonna” happen. Iran wins. Increased funding for Hezbullah, Hamas, terrorist activities world wide, and continued advancement of Iran’s nuclear development (weapons of mass destruction) will continue. The problem as I see it is that the United States and the European Union have been trying to apply Western logic to a non-Western situation. The thinking of the negotiators is based upon Western thought, the Judeo-Christian philosophies. The Iranians on the other hand used the Middle Eastern thought process based upon teachings in the Quran, the Hadith, and based upon Middle Eastern logic of taking advantage of a weaker opponent, based upon tribal retaliation. Compromise is a sign of weakness.

At the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, in the long term, this proposal is not good for Israel. This proposal is not good for the United States. This proposal is not good for the Levant. This proposal is not good for both Northern and Central Africa. But, this proposal will be good for Iran. I urge everyone to contact their U.S. House of Representatives and Senators urging them to vote against the acceptance of this Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action when the vote comes up before Congress. It is too one sided in my opinion.

Laurence Morrell

Maitland