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	<title>Run Ox &#187; Activism</title>
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	<description>run! run!</description>
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		<title>Some Thoughts about Volunteers and Their Employers</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/20/some-thoughts-about-volunteers-and-their-employers/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/20/some-thoughts-about-volunteers-and-their-employers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 21 Dec 2009 01:21:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Commerce]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Web + More]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adaptive marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit diagnosis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[passport to fun]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[todays escapes]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/20/some-thoughts-about-volunteers-and-their-employers/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Volunteering --- a bridge to a closer community, and helping your local needy. Of course, freeing up the time to volunteer may easily waste time that could really be put to so much better use elsewhere. On the other hand, volunteering can be more fun with your co-workers getting involved by your side.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Volunteering; a bridge to a stronger community, and supporting your local needy. To quote the old saying, charity begins at home. Of course, adjusting your workload so that you&#8217;re free to volunteer often actually consumes some of that very same free time. Moreover, as everybody knows, when volunteering becomes a team effort with friends or co-workers, it will be far more fun.</p>
<p>Understanding the preponderance of this issue, some companies are making themselves into initiatives helping their employees to give back to the community through volunteer activities. A leader in this field is Adaptive Marketing LLC who also offer shopping and financial benefits programs such as <a href="http://identi.ca/ShoppingEssentials">Shopping Essentials</a>.</p>
<p>When you think about company supported charitable effort, you probably think of giving blood, maybe an annual call for donations, but that&#8217;s no longer true in the modern day. To go back to our earlier example, Adaptive Marketing has offered staff members the opportunity to get involved in everything from running shoe recycling efforts to local tree replanting days. By centralizing the organization individual volunteers&#8217; tasks grew into larger programs, with specific locations, dates and times posted ahead of time to make time management easy for volunteers. Naturally, it&#8217;s essential to let volunteers find activities according to their own interests. Businesses involved in this like Adaptive Marketing, present their employees with a diverse list of events. Previous projects have ranged between areas as diverse as education for children and young adults, green programs, and events supporting theatre. The result is that Adaptive Marketing volunteers have the chance to use their time in meaningful, important ways and enjoy joining in the process.</p>
<p>A big one-off event or a regularly scheduled day &#8212; this is how a firm usually organizes volunteer initiatives like these, often at a local school or the homeless shelter in town. There are people who assert they haven&#8217;t the time, but even they may be able to squeeze in the public library&#8217;s used-book sale.</p>
<p>Commercial history is full of tales of organizations supporting the citizens of their hometown. Like many other companies, Adaptive Marketing sponsors volunteer initiatives to support the people of its home town and to generate goodwill within its home community through its members of staff actions. One thing volunteer drives are certain to do is leave your employees feeling good about themselves, which leads to a motivated company. By now, we think, the benefits of a company-supported volunteer program for everyone involved are are plain to grasp for everyone.</p>
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		<title>Women Fight Back against Ocella</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/03/women-fight-back-against-ocella/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/03/women-fight-back-against-ocella/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:19:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blood clot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Blood Clot Related Injury]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cardiovascular Injury]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[deep vein  thrombosis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[DVT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heart  Attack]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heart Arrhy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pulmonary embolism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yasmin birth control side effects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yasmin side effects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yaz side effects]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yaz/yasmin lawsuit]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/12/03/women-fight-back-against-ocella/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[ Mass tort status is being considered in the lawsuits that have been filed against the makers of the birth control tablets Yasmin or Yaz and its generic form Ocella. This is largely due to the increasing number of cases being filed across the country where victims claim stroke and other serious health problems caused [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p> Mass tort status is being considered in the lawsuits that have been filed against the makers of the birth control tablets Yasmin or Yaz and its generic form Ocella. This is largely due to the increasing number of cases being filed across the country where victims claim stroke and other serious health problems caused by taking Yasmin or Ocella. <a href="http://www.thelegaladvocate.com/cases/iyaz/">Yaz side effects</a> extend from ischemic stroke or heart attack, to pulmonary embolism and other blood clot related injuries.
</p>
<p> <b>Mass Tort</b> is simply civil claim that encompasses a number of complainants. This action is taken against one or more corporate defendants in court. Unlike a <i>class action</i> where a number of people take it upon themselves to bring forth litigation as a whole, in mass tort the original plaintiffs and lawyers use mass media outlets to reach other possible plaintiffs. Those TV ads and websites questioning if you are a loved one have been effected by a particular product are the result of mass tort status.
</p>
<p> Any women that have been wounded as a result of taking Yaz, Yasmin or Ocella may be entitled to recompense. Many attorneys and legal advocate agencies such as thelegaladvocate.com now extend assistance to anyone feeling side effects and health issues as a direct result of using Yasmin contraception. Now that more women across the U.S. are coming forward and filing suit, the legal system is moving closer to rendering justice for those who were misinformed by the birth control manufacturers and possibly their doctors.</p>
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		<title>Endangered Bird</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/07/27/endangered-bird/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/07/27/endangered-bird/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 27 Jul 2009 21:19:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Animal Supplies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Science Infos]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/07/27/endangered-bird/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The numbers of Gouldian Finches have weakened rather rapidly during the 20th century. Their habitat has been reduced or altered. Early research indicated a parasite called air sac mite, was responsible for the decline of the Gouldian. However, this idea has been ruled out. In general,  The Gouldian Finches are susceptible to diseases and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The numbers of <a href="http://www.fabulousfinch.com/">Gouldian Finches</a> have weakened rather rapidly during the 20th century. Their habitat has been reduced or altered. Early research indicated a parasite called air sac mite, was responsible for the decline of the Gouldian. However, this idea has been ruled out. In general,  The Gouldian Finches are susceptible to diseases and viral infections. Their glorious colors mean that they are easily killed by predators. Fires are listed as the #1 threat to the natural populations. The total number of Gouldian finches all told is not low, however, because they are among the most popular pet birds, and are bred in captivity for the pet trade.</p>
<p>Actions have been taken and are underway to implement a recovery plan to recover and conserve its natural habitats, such as building protective fencing to prevent damage by cattle. Attempts at reintroduction have so far proved unsuccessful; it was also suggested to develop management guidelines for land-holders about appropriate land management, promoting the recovery program and Gouldian Finche conservation.</p>
<p>Although often bred in a colony in captivity, in the wild  The Gouldian Finches are not a colony bird. However, out of the breeding season it assembles in flocks often a mixed flock consisting of Longtail Finches, Masked Finches and Gouldians. This is probably a defence against predation. Flocks used to consist of up to 1000&#8243;2000 individuals. During the breeding season they are usually found on rough scree slopes where vegetation is sparse. In the dry season they are more nomadic and will move to wherever there is food and water.</p>
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		<title>Devastating Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Is Hard to Screen for, because Many Indicators Are Similar to More Common Conditions</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/05/17/devastating-malignant-pleural-mesothelioma-is-hard-to-screen-for-because-many-indicators-are-similar-to-more-common-conditions/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/05/17/devastating-malignant-pleural-mesothelioma-is-hard-to-screen-for-because-many-indicators-are-similar-to-more-common-conditions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2009 06:30:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Internet MedicalResources]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life Of Health]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2009/05/17/devastating-malignant-pleural-mesothelioma-is-hard-to-screen-for-because-many-indicators-are-similar-to-more-common-conditions/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Mesothelioma is a uncommon and quick acting tumor where no helpful remedy is around in spite of the finding of many potential molecular and genetic targets. The final stages of MPM diagnosis and the long period of time that connects contacts and diagnosis have made it tricky to fully study what risk factors do and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Mesothelioma is a uncommon and quick acting tumor where no helpful remedy is around in spite of the finding of many potential molecular and genetic targets. The final stages of MPM diagnosis and the long period of time that connects contacts and diagnosis have made it tricky to fully study what risk factors do and their downstream molecular effects.</p>
<p>Quite a few hospitals are beginning to see increasing numbers of patients with <a href="http://www.availusa.org/">pleural mesothelioma</a>. Because of this, pathologists studying the case are given a number of problems, that are divided into those encountered in distinguishing between malignant mesothelioma and worriless changes and those experienced in differentiating cancer of the mesothelium from additional sorts of e-cadherin and tissue tumors that connect. IHC plays a major role in diagnosis, nevertheless it should be interpreted in regards to the experimental setting and radiological characteristics, and taking into consideration the extensive morphological differentiations  that exist in malignant mesothelioma.</p>
<p>Cancer of the mesothelium is a primary cancer of the serosal cavities, a basic location that also gets affected frequently by metastatic disease, predominantly from primary cancers of the breast, ovary and lung. Progression in immunohistochemistry have lead to enhanced diagnostic sensitivity and specificity in the differential diagnosis in both cytological and histological material. Recently, the authors group used high throughput technology to the classification of new flags that may aid in telling the difference between cancer of the mesothelium from cancer in the peritoneum and ovaries, tumors cells that contain closely related histogenesis and antigenic profile. Along with the improved medical devices obtainable for cancer of the serosa diagnosis, knowing the biology of mesothelioma has accumulate in recent years.</p>
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		<title>Why Edward Abington, Jr. Must be Investigated!</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/21/why-edward-abington-jr-must-be-investigated/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/21/why-edward-abington-jr-must-be-investigated/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Jun 2008 23:14:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/21/why-edward-abington-jr-must-be-investigated/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;The American Diplomat in Arafat&#8217;s Corner,&#8221; published in The Jerusalem Report, came as no surprise to me. It was referring to Edward Abington, Jr., the United States&#8217; former consul general in Jerusalem who is now &#8220;guiding the Palestinians through the labyrinths of Washington. And his firm is being paid $2.25 million for his expertise.&#8221;
Allow the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&#8220;The American Diplomat in Arafat&#8217;s Corner,&#8221; published in The Jerusalem Report, came as no surprise to me. It was referring to Edward Abington, Jr., the United States&#8217; former consul general in Jerusalem who is now &#8220;guiding the Palestinians through the labyrinths of Washington. And his firm is being paid $2.25 million for his expertise.&#8221;</p>
<p>Allow the following information to shed light on his less than faithful service to American taxpayers:</p>
<p>&#8220;Dear Congresswoman Kaptur:<br />
 Thank you for your valuable assistance in my pursuit of justice! It&#8217;s wonderfully refreshing to see some public servants truly helping out their fellow Americans.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s obvious from Mr. Abington, Jr.&#8217;s letter to you that he has strongly held political views that prefers the continued occupation of JUDAISM&#8217;S MOST HOLY SITE &#8212; the Temple Mount &#8212; by militant Muslims. Such radical views enable the Muslim extremists to continue to pose a threat to religious Jews and Christians who merely hope to pray on the site&#8230;</p>
<p>However historically or biblically inaccurate Mr. Abington, Jr&#8217;s views are, I believe he is entitled to them. I do not believe his personal views ought to interfere with his public duty. It appears he has DELIBERATELY IGNORED every relevant FACT that PROVED my arrest amounted to political and religious PERSECUTION.</p>
<p>As honestly reported in The Jerusalem Post article he referred to, I wasn&#8217;t interrogated&#8230;by 6 different SECRET SERVICEMEN about the TEMPLE MOUNT because of an &#8220;expired visa!&#8221; I charged Ms. Leech (his assistant) with complicity in their unjust actions against me for going along with their lie that my visa was expired and for turning a blind eye to their undemocratic ways. I&#8217;d given her a letter for Mr. Abington, Jr. to PROTEST MY POLITICAL ABUSE AND RELIGIOUS MISTREATMENT. Since he never bothered to respond, I&#8217;m not sure he even received it.</p>
<p>It was difficult to deal with Ms. Leech&#8230;since she was quite antagonistic, contending that Israel wanted to deport me because &#8220;you wanted to blow up the mosque.&#8221; When I protested that simply was NOT TRUE, she angrily ordered her assistant, &#8220;Go see what he&#8217;s charged with.&#8221; He came back and said, &#8220;Visa violation.&#8221; So she KNEW the real reason I was in jail was for being a member of the Temple Mount Faithful, but later went along with their LIE about my visa&#8230;</p>
<p>Mr. Abington, Jr. falsely accused me of being proud about my imprisonment. I&#8217;m not proud of it nor ashamed, but I do believe in making the most out of a bad situation&#8230;Why shouldn&#8217;t I use my horrible experience to underscore and further the JUST CAUSE of the Temple Mount Faithful? How could anyone fail to understand this?&#8230;After all, it&#8217;s the TEMPLE Mount, not the mosque mount!</p>
<p>Is it too much for an INNOCENT AMERICAN to expect his government to stand up for him? All I&#8217;ve requested from the beginning is for the Consul General to STRONGLY PROTEST my unjust imprisonment and deportation. They know what I say is the truth, but because of their hostile views, they&#8217;re playing deaf, dumb and blind to the fact that I was a POLITICO-RELIGIOUS PRISONER.</p>
<p>Frankly, they&#8217;re upset that I refused to go like a lamb to slaughter, but roared like a lion instead &#8211; exposing Peres&#8217; corruption and their complicity. I will continue to seek justice until it is found&#8230;.&#8221;</p>
<div style="float: right; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border-width: 1px 1px 1px 1px; border-style: solid; border-color: white; background-color: white"></div>
<p><b>David Ben-Ariel,</b> a Christian-Zionist writer and author of <i>Beyond Babylon: Europe&#8217;s Rise and Fall,</i> shares a special focus on the Middle East and great interest in Jerusalem, reflected in hard-hitting articles that help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Check out <b>Beyond Babylon.</b></p>
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		<title>Illegal Aliens And Their Abettors Protest</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/13/illegal-aliens-and-their-abettors-protest/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/13/illegal-aliens-and-their-abettors-protest/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2008 06:17:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/06/13/illegal-aliens-and-their-abettors-protest/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Thousand of illegal aliens and those that abet illegal aliens (family members, employers, etc) marched in southern California to protest.  What they were protesting seems odd to most Americans.  They were protesting the illegality of being in the United State illegally.  The Congress is deliberating HR 4437 which would make being in [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Thousand of illegal aliens and those that abet illegal aliens (family members, employers, etc) marched in southern California to protest.  What they were protesting seems odd to most Americans.  They were protesting the illegality of being in the United State illegally.  The Congress is deliberating HR 4437 which would make being in the United States illegally a felony (which it should be) and add harsh punishments to employers that knowing hire illegal aliens.</p>
<p>They claim they are simply protesting to ensure &#8220;immigrant rights&#8221;.  The problem is however that is not the case.  The reality is they want &#8220;illegal immigrant rights&#8221;.  They want people who break our laws to come here to be allowed to stay in this country.  So the question is why have immigration laws at all?</p>
<p>And of course the weak minded lemmings also call the legislation &#8220;racist&#8221;.  Odd, I don&#8217;t think however that the legislation says that we are now recognizing one race as superior to another &#8211; which is the definition of &#8220;racism&#8221;.</p>
<p>Webster&#8217;s Dictionary:</p>
<p>Racism</p>
<p>1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race</p>
<p>2 : racial prejudice or discrimination</p>
<p>No, what the bill really only does is says that if you come here illegally you are going to be punished.  That&#8217;s generally what happens when you break the law isn&#8217;t it?</p>
<p>Problems is these illegals and their abettors don&#8217;t want to have to deal with that reality so they do what good little liberal Marxists always do.  They make crap up.  They claim the debate is about immigration when it&#8217;s not and they cry racism when most of them probably don&#8217;t even know what it means.</p>
<p>If they stuck to the facts they&#8217;d have to admit to themselves just how wrong they are.</p>
<p>And make no mistake.  These people out there protesting are indeed Marxists.  They believe that they have a right to something that isn&#8217;t theirs and they think that they should be able to compel you to let them have it.  To them the land is communal and how dare the United States tell them they can&#8217;t come here to claim their piece of it.</p>
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<p>J.J. Jackson is the owner and Lead Editor of American Conservative Politics &#8211; The Land of the Free (<a href="http://www.thelandofthefree.net)" rel="nofollow">http://www.thelandofthefree.net)</a> and American Conservative Daily (<a href="http://www.americanconservativedaily.com)." rel="nofollow">http://www.americanconservativedaily.com).</a> He is also the owner of American Infidel T-shirts (<a href="http://www.cafepress.com/americaneagle04)." rel="nofollow">http://www.cafepress.com/americaneagle04).</a></p>
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		<title>The Options For Regime Change In Iran</title>
		<link>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/05/26/the-options-for-regime-change-in-iran/</link>
		<comments>http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/05/26/the-options-for-regime-change-in-iran/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2008 02:38:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Activism]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.runox.com/archives/2008/05/26/the-options-for-regime-change-in-iran/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If recent speeches by US officials on Iran&#8217;s plans to become a nuclear power can be seen as part of a build-up to a possible US-evoked regime change in Iran, the intelligence behind it is at once scant and abundant. Whatever the real official US policy toward Iran is aiming for exactly is hard to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If recent speeches by US officials on Iran&#8217;s plans to become a nuclear power can be seen as part of a build-up to a possible US-evoked regime change in Iran, the intelligence behind it is at once scant and abundant. Whatever the real official US policy toward Iran is aiming for exactly is hard to get clear, but it is noteworthy that off late, US officials have stepped up their campaign of Iran criticism.</p>
<p>Cautious remarks made by Porter J. Goss, the new head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) drives home the bleak truth to US policy makers that CIA intelligence on Iran is as yet rather insubstantial. They form a stark contrast to last week&#8217;s torrent of factual information launched by a major figurehead of the UN anti-nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).</p>
<p>Despite the scant official intelligence about Iran&#8217;s nuclear status, last week&#8217;s revelation by the IAEA that the country lied about the date it ended plutonium experiments has been among the most damning information to transpire from the country so far. Apparently, the tests to create the nuclear weapon grade material, did not cease in 1993, as Iranians had told the inspectors, but only five years later on, in 1998. It was instantly taken as confirmation by the US Bush administration that Iran is aiming to become a nuclear weapon capability.</p>
<p>The event coincided with Iran&#8217;s presidential elections, which the Bush administration condemned strongly the eve before. It said last Thursday that the exercise was illegitimate and tilted to favor the ruling Islamic mullahs in Tehran. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was exceptionally condemning, saying Iran was choking off political freedom just as other Middle East countries were exploring greater openness. &#8220;I can&#8217;t see how one considers that, quote, a legitimate election,&#8221; Rice was quoted by Reuters. President Bush himself made similar remarks, calling the elections designed to keep power in the hands of a few rulers &#8220;through an electoral process that ignores the basic requirements of democracy.&#8221;</p>
<p>Oddly, the two have been praising Egypt&#8217;s elections as a step toward greater democracy, which are the subject of similar criticism from many international and national observers. The comments are taken very seriously however by Iran&#8217;s top politicians. Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi called on US President George W Bush to apologize.</p>
<p>All the shouting sounds remarkably similar to the Iraq situation prior to 9/11. Should a pre-emptive strike on Iran be launched any time soon, you don&#8217;t have to look hard to find out how the scenario might be unfolding even as of now. Matching the recent comments by the Bush administration and a February study by the Iran Policy Committee which recommends a regime change come what may, you&#8217;d start to believe that plans to this effect are well underway. The members of the Iran Policy Committee include former civilian and military officials and attracted around 80 members of congress when they presented their document (<a href="http://www.iranpolicycommittee.org)." rel="nofollow">www.iranpolicycommittee.org).</a> The aim of the game should be to -in the report&#8217;s wording- &#8216;recall the nuclear time clock that is ticking down as Iran drives to reach nuclear weapons capability&#8217;.</p>
<p>The policy committee cites three recommended strategies, the most controversial of which is to remove the former Mujahideen from the list of terrorist groups and give it back its arsenal of over 2,000 tanks and armored vehicles, which the US troops confiscated of it in Iraq, having first bombed the fighters to appease Iran. The second proposal is to carry out a precision bombardment in order to disable the country&#8217;s nuclear facility. Lastly, to topple the Iranian clerics, the report cites continued negotiations to get Iran to abandon its program. &#8220;These options are neither mutually exclusive nor logically exhaustive; but they do reflect courses of action being considered in Washington&#8221;, the writers say. None of the politicians themselves have admitted this much, but it&#8217;s widely believed that the Iranian issue is seen as posing a direct threat to national security interests.</p>
<p>Over the last few months, Iran has been playing the international PR card cleverly. It even consented for a second time to demands by EU negotiators that it stop its developments of nuclear energy and enable more inspections by IAEA agents. And in contrast to the US-Iran relationship, the EU has booked significant progress in its Iranian negotiations. Having managed to get Iran to halt developments for another time span of six months, Brussels officials were quoted as saying they are &#8220;ready to continue looking into ways of further developing political and economic cooperation with Iran.&#8221;</p>
<p>It will be interesting to see how the US will padd out its Iran policies around this. If Iran is playing the cat and mouse game that Saddam Hussein played, it employs way different tactics and it will likely be difficult for the US to engage in a full blown row over anything substantial. Even the recent discrepancies revealed by the IAEA were commented on by the pragmatic Akhbar Ali Hashemi Rafsanjani, the tipped winner of the Presidential elections, as an issue his regime would be able to work on with the international community. Outsmarting the Iranian regime will likely prove more difficult than getting into hot water with Saddam, that&#8217;s for sure.</p>
<p>This likely drives frustration levels high and this might just be something that the US officials won&#8217;t take for too long. &#8220;[...] diplomacy pursued by the Europeans and several U.S.administrations has produced little tangible result over the past quarter century. And unless the potential for UN Security Council sanctions is on the table, diplomacy is likely to yield few results in the future&#8221;, according to the Iran policy committee report writers.</p>
<p>Intelligence gathering is full swing underway from many sides. The National Intelligence Council, which produces the estimates and reports to the CIA&#8217;s Goss, is expected this spring to circulate a classified update that will focus on Iran and its weapons. The Senate Intelligence Committee has also begun its own review into the quality of intelligence on Iran in an effort to prevent similar mistakes as the ones made in Iraq.</p>
<p>&#8220;If the regime continues to prove intransigent with respect to fulfilling its obligations under the NPT, the international community may not have the luxury of pursuing only a regime change policy&#8221;, the IPC report states as the rationale for any sane policy toward Iran. This is what sold the war on Iraq partially. Yet the intelligence that&#8217;s gathered on the country needs to be highly specific if the government is not to make the same mistake. The statement that &#8216;The theocratic leadership in Tehran must know that they will not be permitted to achieve a nuclear bomb status&#8217; which follows on from the urge that the nuclear time clock ought to be removed, is simply hardly going to do much for the US population.</p>
<p>The military action the committee proposes is not as full blown as the invasion into Iraq, but is recommended to involve a limited number of high precision military strikes, aimed at destabilising confidence in the nation&#8217;s rulers and destroying its nuclear sites. &#8220;The moderate action option that includes limited military strikes would at best buy time while leaving intact or even enhancing the overall threat of the regime in areas like terrorism, opposition to the Arab-Israel peace process, and involvement in Iraq. Nevertheless, limited, precision military strikes, executed according to high quality targeting information with minimal collateral damage and casualties might not only set back Iran&#8217;s nuclear program to a significant degree but likely would also help destabilize the regime&#8221;, according to the report. President Bush has on repeated occasions said it would be ridiculous to assume the US government is planning to attack Iran, yet he&#8217;s also not excluded it, saying &#8216;all options are on the table&#8217;.</p>
<p>Last week&#8217;s report by the IAEA revealed the status of some key items of contention between Iran and the inspectors. In short, the report has been highly damaging to the Iranian position internationally. In it, proof was shown of Iran not only admitting to misleading IAEA inspectors over the end date of its experiments with plutonium, but the speech by the IAEA&#8217;s deputy director Pierre Goldschmidt to the agency&#8217;s board of governors revealed also that Iran had acquired sensitive technology that could be used to make nuclear weapons earlier than it originally stated.</p>
<p>In an immediate reaction to the report, US Ambassador to the IAEA, Jackie Sanders, issued a written statement to the same board about Iran&#8217;s failure to provide information on certain key points. She said that it was &#8220;evident that Iran has not &#8216;come clean&#8217; about its past or present nuclear activities, and that it continues to deny requested IAEA access to people, places and information.&#8221;</p>
<p>Sanders represents the US State Department, calling for strict treatment of Iran, also on the basis of the last two decades&#8217; worth of breaches of the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty. Most of the basis for any action by the US or the UN Security Council against Iraq will have to come from the report by the agency&#8217;s inspectors. Aside from the erroneous plutonium enrichment dating, the report mentions these faults:</p>
<p>- Iran has only provided the inspectors with a one page document on the clandestine international network that reportedly sold it enrichment-related technology. It says it cannot provide the original documentation purporting to this deal. The inspectors believe that the offer that the network made to Iran in 1987 was inclusive of some very sensitive technology, including uranium re-conversion and casting, which could be used to convert HEU [highly enriched uranium] into metal.</p>
<p>- Apparently, the clandestine procurement network delivered the country the same documentation, known as P-1, to the sensitive technologies once again in 1994. There has been no real answer as to why this happened twice and the suspicion is that -given an absence of information on the dealings between Iran and the network during the years 1987 to 1993- that the information was needed for a second site somewhere in Iran. &#8220;Only the provision by Iran of further documentation and access to the IAEA can answer these questions&#8221;, according to Goldschmidt.</p>
<p>- The information information to the IAEA, this time with regard to the dates of shipment of centrifuge bellows to Iran was also erroneously dated. These bellows were shipped in 1994 and 1995, but originally Iran claimed they were shipped in 1997. The centrifuge issue has been an issue of misleading information before, according to the inspectors, who are now saying that Iran might be hiding something.</p>
<p>- Iran refuses to hand over documentation regarding its what&#8217;s termed &#8216;unusual&#8217; management of the previously-secret Gchine uranium mine and mill. The IAEA has raised the interesting question of why the AEOI suspended its work at Gchine between 1994 and 2000 to focus on the much less promising Saghand mine. Was any other Iranian entity working the Gchine mine during that period, the inspectors wonder.</p>
<p>- The status of Iran&#8217;s efforts to construct deep underground storage tunnels at Esfahan for future storage of nuclear materials is also not been declared in a timely manner, as required by its Subsidiary Arrangements.</p>
<p>- The inspectors were not allowed access to the Parchin high-explosive facility. &#8220;If the IAEA continues to have suspicions about that facility related either to Iran&#8217;s safeguards obligations or its suspension commitments, we believe Iran must &#8212; to be in compliance with its obligations &#8212; provide it&#8221;, according to Goldschmidt.</p>
<p>- Iran has continued to defy the Board&#8217;s request to cease its efforts to build the heavy water research reactor. Such a reactor is unnecessary from a technical standpoint, given that Iran&#8217;s existing research reactor is reportedly under-utilized. A heavy water research reactor, once completed and operating, would give Iran a dangerous &#8220;break-out capability&#8221; to produce weapons-grade plutonium.</p>
<p>Iranian officials in reactions to the news media denied not being collaborative with the international inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency. &#8220;It&#8217;s possible that at times, Iran has not reported its activities,&#8221; Mr Rafsanjani was heard saying on a BBC&#8217;s Newsnight television programme last week. He also retorted to attempts by President Bush to speak directly to the Iranian population, saying that Iranians who were dissatisfied with the political process in the country should be free to speak their minds. &#8220;If they have reasonable points, we should accept them,&#8221; he told the BBC. &#8220;If not, we should persuade them of our case.&#8221;</p>
<p>For the time being, this might redress the disbalance that the IAEA&#8217;s findings have caused. There are no direct talks between the US and Iran, but this does not mean that the US is not involved in the diplomatic efforts from countries like the EU to try to dissuade the country from its atomic path. The US is backing the EU-Iranian tri-partite talks and this way has been offering Iran on a diplomatic level better chances of access to the WTO. Iran, which has admitted it feels encircled by Western (US) forces and is mostly disturbed by the presence of troops in its neighboring Iraq, has not made it a secret it wishes to see Iraqis lead their own lives without US troops in the country. The rhetoric of course a brilliantly close copy of the US leader&#8217;s words spoken to the Iranian population a few months hence. The official US line was transcribed by Sanders in her document in strict terms however. Citing a &#8220;confidence deficit&#8221; created by Iran&#8217;s lack of full cooperation she says this has not been restored. &#8220;This [..] deficit stands in stark contrast to the growing international consensus that, in light of two decades of Iranian safeguards breaches relating to the most sensitive aspects of the fuel cycle, two decades of systematic effort by Iran to conceal those violations, and continuing denial by Iran of full information and cooperation to the IAEA, the only acceptable outcome is for Iran to cease and dismantle all nuclear fuel cycle activities.&#8221;</p>
<p>Whether the whole situation is going to come to blows of course is to a big extent dependent on the US interpretation of the events in Iran, the Iranian collaboration to the IAEA and the role the EU plays in the near future. The chances the US faces if it succeeds to get the Iranians referred to the Security Council, the most logical next step if it gets support from other countries, are not altogether good. Even if other countries support the move, there is the option that China or Russia might block action against the country. Russia has agreed to supply the Iranians with uranium that it can enrich in a matter of six months, cutting significantly short the time span of seven years that the Iranians were estimated to need to get the material needed also in weapons.</p>
<p>Chances the US spin doctoring stand to whet the Iranian populace&#8217;s appetite for regime change by altogether pieceful means are even more remote. Domestic Iranians are said to be more staunchly united than the Iraqis in their dissent for American values. They believe that if their nuclear capacity becomes a tangible item of contention on the international scene, what is likely to happen is that yet again the divide between the developing world and the Western world is highlighted. And they are right. This pretty much leaves open the military strike option and support for insurgencies by means of (open or secret) support for the Mujahideen. Which the US policy makers will likely not opt for either simply because it will likely not work out all that much immediately, despite the no doubt viciousness of the warfare that would emerge against the regime in Tehran. The Mujahideen fought side by side with the incumbent mullahs to overthrow the Shah in 1979 and then was ousted, a move that went accompanied by the killing of over 1,000 of these fighters.</p>
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<p>Angelique van Engelen is a writer based in Amsterdam. She writes political articles and takes on research &#038; writing assignments.</p>
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