Israel, Hamas, and Iran - oh my! New Daphne Barak interview!

Just heard a most interesting thing -- Israeli President Shimon Peres taking on Jimmy Carter!!

You know how Jimmy Carter came out recently and announced publicly that Israel had nuclear weapons (and not to mention Carter's personal meetings with Hamas) ??!! Well, apparently Peres has responded...

Shimon Peres gave an interview to Daphne Barak, just the other day, and told her (about Carter's statement on Israel's nuclear weapons): "What if I, the Israeli President, would announce how many nuclear bombs America has? -- And I know!" Wonder what Carter's response would be. LOL And Peres also told Daphne that Mofaz (whose comments about Israel bombing Iran's nuclear sites sent petrol prices to the sky) should "have a much better selection of his words." No kidding.

Peres talked about Hamas as well. He said that you can't talk to them: "No way!"

This world is coming unglued at the seams. I'm afraid that one day I'm going to awaken to WWIII.

Seriously though, these are serious questions and serious issues with extraordinary implications and extremely perilous outcomes. And there are no easy answers.

I mean - should governments talk to terrorist organizations like Hamas, Hezbollah, Taliban, Al Qaida?

What is to be done about Iran? Do you take out their nuclear sites before it goes any farther? Or do you wait and keep trying diplomacy and hope that they play nice?

Tough issues and tough questions with no easy answers.

You all are smart people and I would love to hear some of your opinions on these issues!

Oh -- and does anyone know if there is any more information on Daphne's interview with Shimon Peres? When will it air? I can't wait to hear the rest of his statements about Jimmy Carter...and everything else!

I've been hearing that he made many more very attention-grabbing statements!!

Firstly --- I saw a similar thing about Daphne Barak's interview with Shimon Peres. It is supposed to air worldwide during the next 10 days. Should be a fascinating interview!

She also interviewed Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas and he talked about Hamas as well. He said that he had initiated an invitation to start talking to Hamas, but that Hamas had not responded to him.

And I heard that Peres also talked to her about the situation here in Pakistan -- he said that Musharraf's real fight was about "who would control the nuclear arsenal of troubled Pakistan."

What does everyone think about that??!!

You are correct in that there are no easy answers or solutions to these situations. I don't think that you can just, as government, begin talking to terrorist groups though, as this just gives them credibility and rewards them for being terrorists. It's like saying "Yeah, you're killing people, but that's okay, we'll honor you and talk to you anyway." I don't think that governments can, at the same time, behave responsibly and talk to terrorists organizations. And as far as Iran - their nuclear arsenal should be destroyed before they can develop a weapon. If you let a guy like Ahmadinajad get a nuke, we can only imagine what he'll do with it. A pre-emptive strike might very well be the wisest course of action.

So -- I agree with Shimon Peres: "NO WAY!!" You cannot talk to Hamas or any of these organizations!! Hamas is a terrorist organization!! You can't just talk to these people and make nice with them!!! You absolutely cannot!! And Iran is DANGEROUS and SCARY!!! You cannot just sit back and let that crazy madman get a nuclear weapon!!!! This not an option!!! A nuclear-armed Iran cannot be allowed to come to fruition!!! The Iranian nuclear site must be bombed!!

Oh - and I found some more information about Daphne's interviews with Peres & Abbas on her website: www.DaphneBarak.com

I absolutely want to see both of these interviews!!! And I agree that the Peres comments about Jimmy Carter are most interesting. Carter is a moron living in a fantasy world. He needs a keeper. You can't just have former heads of state roaming all over the world, meeting with terrorists groups, and talking about another country's nuclear secrets (a country who is supposed to be your friend and ally!!). Carter has dropped his basket completely. He is way outside the bounds of appropriate behavior for someone of his stature and position. Way outside the lines.

Definitely want to see Daphne's interviews with Peres & Abass!! She always draws revealing and headline-getting statements out of her interview subjects --- so this should really be fascinating!!

Well, I agree that the interviews will definitely be must-see!!! I went to her website too. There are some photos from her upcoming Peres and Abbad interviews. Really great!

However, I disagree about your premise of attacking Iran preemptively. How do we know that Ahmadinajad is not just blowing smoke? The guy is crazy after all. If you attack Iran, his first move will be to shut down the Strait of Hormuz -- and that shuts down the transport of oil. You think gas/petrol prices are high now??!! Just wait until that happens. I hope you like walking or biking to work.

And I also disagree with your concept of not talking to terrorist organizations. If you don't talk, you can't ever come to or reach solutions that don't involve confrontations. Talking is always the first and most important step. And whether anyone likes it or not, Hamas was elected to govern. So talking to them, or to Hezbollah is slightly different that talking to Al Qaeda or the Taliban... But regardless of who the organization is, if in talking to them there is a possibility of reaching a peaceful solution, then shouldn't talking to them always be an option that is considered? Whether it is Hamas, Hezbollah, or a government like Iran - diplomacy should always be the first and most powerful option.

And that is something that Jimmy Carter understands. And why not talk to Hamas? What do you lose just by talking? I don't get why everyone is harassing him like this about his travels and meetings and statements. He recognizes that you have to have open dialogue with people - no matter who they are. And he also realizes that you can't just begin bombing everybody who might or might not be developing nuclear weapons. I mean, supposedly Saddam had WMD's right? Gee, that pre-emptive offensive worked out really well for everybody. We should definitely do that again.

These are indeed serious issues though -- and that is why I want to see the interviews and hear what else Peres & Abass have to say! Who knows - maybe I'll change my mind one way or the other!

I have been hearing lots of interesting rumors that both of these leaders made some other very blunt statements when they talked to Daphne. This is going to be something very important for everyone to see! These leaders and their opinions and comments affect us all !!!! And our futures!!!

Speaking of Daphne Barak -- it seems that she is suffering from a serious health crisis! I was listening to her speak recently in an interview and I noticed that she was coughing and her voice did not sound as usual... So I did some web searching and it seems that she is quite ill!! She contracted a serious parasite while in Pakistan and has not been able to receive the medical treatment she needs. This is being posted all over the internet -- including websites all over Pakistan!!

One of the messages posted on the web:

http://fearlessblogging.com/post/view/943