Bush Tells Iran/Syria: Surrender, Then We'll Talk

It looks like Bush is posturing again -- saying something he really doesn't mean so he'll look good to the media. That's all I can figure after looking at his preconditions for involving Iran and Syria in regional peace talks.

For Iran, Bush says he will be willing to talk to them if they just give up all of their nuclear ambitions. This is an impossible condition for the Iranians. It is tantamount to saying that if they surrender to all our demands, we'll be happy to talk with them. This is not a willingness to negotiate -- it's a demand for unconditional surrender.

If we actually sit down with the Iranians and really negotiate with no preconditions, we might actually get what we want. But to demand they meet our conditions before we'll even talk with them will accomplish nothing.

Our demands for Syria are similar. Bush is demanding that Syria stop involving itself in Lebanon [that is stop supporting Hamas]. That is the same as Syria demanding we stop supporting Israel before they'll talk to us. Both are ridiculous demands. But once again, if we sit down and talk with no preconditions, we might actually get what we want. However, demands will do nothing but continue the hard feelings.

We need Iran and Syria to help us disengage from Iraq. They don't want an unstable Iraq, because it borders their own countries. As for us, we just want cheap oil. If we really want out of Iraq without looking like we lost, we must sit down with the Iranians and Syrians and talk. But these talks will never take place with Bush's preconditions.

Bush would like for the media and the public to think he is now willing to negotiate, but that is just not true. He is actually demanding the same things he has been demanding for quite a while. He doesn't really want to talk -- he just wants us to think he wants to. The only thing he really wants to do is "stay the course", and that's what he'll do as long as he's in office, regardless of how many U.S. soldiers are killed in the Iraqi civil war.

If he's not really willing to negotiate, then we need to get out of Iraq immediately. Any chance of victory was lost long ago.