“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: may they prosper who love you.” Psalm 122: 6
________________________________________
#####
Zalmay Khalilzad—Fatal Flaws of the Iran Deal:
In our public-relations driven political culture, once the administration in power decides on a significant policy issue, it moves to oversell it at home and abroad, exaggerating the benefits and downplaying the problems. The just-announced Iran nuclear framework agreement is a clear illustration.
The administration is describing this agreement using hyperbolic language. The President has described it as “historic,” claiming that:
- the envisaged limitations on enrichment and plutonium cut off all of Iran’s possible paths to nuclear weapons, thereby helping the cause of regional stability and global non-proliferation;
- the planned inspections will ensure that if Iran cheats “the world will know it”;
- if Iran violates the agreement, sanctions will be re-imposed automatically; and,
- as indicated in the Iranian Supreme Leader’s fatwa, Iran has renounced nuclear weapons.
The foreign minister of Iran has already accused the White House of spinning what the agreement actually says. And there may be significant differences between the White House fact sheet and the Iranian version of the agreement. We will have to see.
But beyond hyperbole and spin, there are four reasons why this agreement is flawed and poses significant risks:
First, using the so-called fatwa by Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei as an indicator of Iran’s true intentions— present and future—is a mistake. A far better case can be made that the acquisition of nuclear weapons capability has been and remains Iran’s objective.
The economic rationale for Iran to use nuclear power to generate electricity is very weak. Iran is rich in hydrocarbons and has huge amounts of natural gas. It would certainly be more economical for Iran to generate power using alternatives to nuclear power.
[…]
To continue reading, click here.
SnyderTalk Comment: How many fatal flaws should it take to kill the Iran deal? Just one.
See “Nuclear agreement risks projecting US weakness”. It projects U.S. weakness and stupidity.
See “Saudi Arabia Strongly to Reach out to Pakistan”. What does this tell you?
Finally, see “Obama Admits: By 2028, Iran’s Breakout Time Will Be Near Zero”. It’s just a matter of time before the Iranians have the fissile material they need to manufacture nuclear weapons. How much time it will take is anybody’s guess. This much is certain, though: it won’t take 13 years.
Micah Chapter 4:
1 And it will come about in the last days that the mountain of the house of Yahweh will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills, and the peoples will stream to it.
2 Many nations will come and say, “Come and let us go up to the mountain of Yahweh and to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us about His ways and that we may walk in His paths.” For from Zion will go forth the law, even the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.
3 And He will judge between many peoples and render decisions for mighty, distant nations. Then they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation will not lift up sword against nation, and never again will they train for war.
4 Each of them will sit under his vine and under his fig tree, with no one to make them afraid, for the mouth of Yahweh Sabaoth has spoken.
5 Though all the peoples walk each in the name of his god, as for us, we will walk in the name of Yahweh our God forever and ever.
6 “In that day,” declares Yahweh, “I will assemble the lame and gather the outcasts, even those whom I have afflicted. 7 I will make the lame a remnant and the outcasts a strong nation, and Yahweh will reign over them in Mount Zion from now on and forever. 8 As for you, tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you it will come—even the former dominion will come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem. 9 Now, why do you cry out loudly? Is there no king among you, or has your counselor perished, that agony has gripped you like a woman in childbirth? 10 Writhe and labor to give birth, daughter of Zion, like a woman in childbirth; for now you will go out of the city, dwell in the field, and go to Babylon. There you will be rescued; there Yahweh will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. 11 And now many nations have been assembled against you who say, ‘Let her be polluted, and let our eyes gloat over Zion.’ 12 But they do not know the thoughts of Yahweh, and they do not understand His purpose; for He has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor. 13 Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion, for your horn I will make iron and your hoofs I will make bronze, that you may pulverize many peoples, that you may devote to Yahweh their unjust gain and their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.”
#####
________________________________________
#####
#####
________________________________________
#####
Ari Shavit: Iran Nuclear Deal Is a Mistake—The post-Nagasaki Pax Americana has given more humans more peace, more prosperity and more liberty that at any other time in history. Not only as an Israeli but also as a citizen of the free world, I want a strong America to protect freedom, maintain world order and remain the global leader in the 21st century. But what should I do when Washington might make a terrible historic mistake? Iran is not an Israel-only issue. If Iran goes nuclear, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, and the Gulf states will go nuclear. Worried about ISIS? Anxious about al-Qaeda? Shocked by the carnage in Syria? Imagine what will happen when the most unstable region in the world becomes nuclearized. One outcome will be the proliferation of nuclear capabilities in the hands of non-state players that will use them, sooner or later, to catastrophic results. The deal that Obama announced on Thursday does not do enough to prevent this. Only in the years 2011-2012 did Washington begin a strategic and effective diplomatic effort against Tehran, but the moment it began to bear fruit, it was abandoned. A decade of strategic shadowboxing between Iran and the West ended in 2013 with a victory for Tehran.
Uzay Bulut: The West’s Romance with Iran and Islamists— The West seems to have lost the capacity and the will to criticize political Islam. While “peace-loving” liberals in the West show support and sympathy for Hamas, and have removed Hamas from Europe’s terror list, Hamas leaders have been busy expressing their support and sympathy for Osama bin Laden and the Taliban. Why then, for Europeans, is Hamas a “more acceptable” terrorist group than ISIS? Because it targets Jews? If these Islamic jihadist groups cannot carry out their mission right away, it is not because they do not want to. It is because they do not have enough power to — at least for now.
Zack Beauchamp: The real reason Netanyahu and the GOP hate this Iran deal— The ink on the framework deal with Iran was barely dry when Sen. Tom Cotton began trying to tear up the agreement. “I’m going to do everything I can to stop these terms from becoming a final deal,” the author of the now-infamous Senate Republican letter to Iran told CNN on Friday. Cotton is hardly alone. The reaction from congressional Republicans to the nuclear deal has generally ranged from skeptical to furious. And in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has openly said he’s trying to “kill a bad deal.” There are number of specific provisions of the framework deal that these critics dislike. Behind these concerns is something more fundamental: a sharp disagreement with the Obama administration about the nature of the Iranian regime.
Con Coughlin: Iran “Is Intensifying Efforts to Support Hamas in Gaza”— Iran has sent Hamas’s military wing tens of millions of dollars to help it rebuild the network of tunnels in Gaza destroyed by Israel’s invasion last summer, intelligence sources have told The Sunday Telegraph. It is also funding new missile supplies to replenish stocks used to bombard residential neighbourhoods in Israel during the war, code-named Operation Protective Edge by Israel. The renewed funding is a sign that the two old allies are putting behind them a rift caused by the conflict in Syria, where Shia Iran is backing President Bashar al-Assad against Hamas’s mainly Sunni allies. Iran has sponsored Hamas’s military operations for years, despite the contradiction that Hamas is part of the worldwide, Sunni-supremacist Muslim Brotherhood, while Iran is Shia.
Washington Post Editorial: A Deal Without Stability—The largest effect of the nuclear agreement will be to juice the ongoing proxy wars in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia and their allies. If the deal is fully implemented, Iran will receive hundreds of billions in additional revenue, and Tehran is likely to devote much of it to funding its murderous militias in Iraq, the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, and the Houthi movement in Yemen – not to mention Lebanon’s Hizbullah and Hamas in Gaza. What’s missing is a coherent U.S. strategy for stabilizing the region that integrates the nuclear accord with measures to check Iran’s hegemonic ambitions and rebuild crumbling Arab states.
Michael Gerson: Iran’s Remarkable Achievement—The Iranian regime has engaged in nuclear negotiations with the U.S. while actively engaged in a regional conflict against American friends and proxies. Opposition to Bashar al-Assad has become muted, even as he crosses every blood-red line of brutality, to avoid disrupting relations with his Iranian patron. Human rights issues within Iran have become secondary to avoid giving offense. Obama has sometimes seemed more tolerant and empathetic toward Iranian positions than those of allies and partners such as Israel. Will Iran continue to hold U.S. policy in the Middle East hostage – causing the U.S. to hush its reactions to Iranian aggression for fear the regime will walk out of a nuclear deal? The real test will be whether Obama can accompany a final nuclear agreement with a much more aggressive resistance to Iranian ambitions in the region. Otherwise, Iran will simply use the wealth that comes from lifted sanctions to cause more havoc.
Amir Taheri: Iran’s Persian Statement on “Deal” Contradicts U.S. Claims—There has been no agreement on any of the fundamental issues that led to international concern about Iran’s secret nuclear activities. All we have are a number of contradictory statements by various participants in the latest round of talks. The Persian text carefully avoids words that might give the impression that anything has been agreed by the Iranian side or that the Islamic Republic has offered any concessions. The American statement claims that Iran has agreed not to use advanced centrifuges, while the Iranian text insists that “work on advanced centrifuges shall continue.” The American text claims that Iran has agreed to dismantle the core of the heavy water plutonium plant in Arak. The Iranian text says the opposite. The U.S. talks of sanctions “relief” while Iran claims the sanctions would be “immediately terminated.”
Richard N. Haass: The Future of the Iran Nuclear Deal—The framework just adopted by Iran and the P5+1 leaves unanswered at least as many questions as it resolves. Major issues have yet to be settled. A formal, comprehensive accord is supposed to be completed by the end of June. The history of arms control suggests there will be occasions when Iran, which has a record of withholding relevant information from UN weapons inspectors, is suspected of not living up to the letter, much less the spirit, of what was negotiated. Agreement is needed on the process for judging Iranian behavior and for determining appropriate responses. The agreement says nothing about Iran’s missile programs or support for terrorists and proxies, much less about what it is doing in Syria or Iraq or Yemen, or about human rights at home. Iran is a would-be imperial power that seeks regional primacy. A nuclear agreement might even make this reality worse, as Iran could well emerge with its reputation enhanced and a long-term option to build nuclear weapons intact.
Mehdi Khalaji and Patrick Clawson: Khamenei’s Silence—Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has so far kept silent about the nuclear framework. Yet given the redlines Khamenei set for the negotiations in recent months, the deal can hardly be satisfactory to him. Moreover, it is inauspicious that right after the Obama administration released its fact sheet, Foreign Minister Javad Zarif accused Western media and the U.S. government of providing a false report about what had been agreed in the Lausanne negotiations. In Khamenei’s March 21 speech in Mashhad, he emphasized that the current negotiations are “only on the nuclear dossier; that’s all. Everybody should know it. We do not negotiate with America on regional issues. America’s objectives in the region are the opposite of our objectives.”
Dr. Ephraim Kam: Deal Makes Iran Stronger than Ever—A comparison between each side’s opening position and the principles of the understanding underscores the importance of what Iran has achieved. While at the start, the Americans presented a series of demands, the Iranians got their way on most issues.
Times of Israel: Israeli Expert: “Very Serious Gaps” at the Heart of the Iran Framework Accord—Ehud Ya’ari, Middle East analyst for Israel’s Channel 2 News, on Saturday highlighted areas of discrepancy between American and Iranian accounts of what the Iran framework agreement actually entails. The American parameters provide for restrictions on enrichment for 15 years, while the Iranian fact sheet speaks of 10 years. The U.S. says that Iran has agreed to surprise inspections, while the Iranians say that such consent is only temporary. Contrary to the U.S. account, Iran is making clear that its stockpile of already enriched uranium—”enough for seven bombs” if sufficiently enriched—will not be shipped out of the country.
John McLaughlin: The Middle East conflict with 5 dimensions—Never in modern times has the Middle East been so chaotic. Many of us who have worked in the region have been comparing it — frighteningly — to Europe’s Thirty Years’ War (1618–48), during which many nations and groups battled each other over everything from territory to religion and commerce. When it was over, the European map had been completely redrawn and the rough outline of the state system we know today came into view. A more modern analogy is the multidimensional complexity of solving a Rubik’s Cube. Or, perhaps, it’s most like a barroom brawl: it’s hard to be sure who started the fight, who is allied with whom, exactly what is at issue, who just changed sides, who is fighting vs. who is just observing, where your leverage is, and how to break it up.
Brian Katulis, Rudy Deleon, and John B. Criag: What the US Can Do to Help Christians in the Middle East—Some of the oldest Christian communities in the world are disappearing in the very lands where their faith was born and first took root. During the past decade, Christians around the Middle East have been subject to vicious murders at the hands of terrorist groups, forced out of their ancestral lands by civil wars, suffered societal intolerance fomented by Islamist groups and subjected to institutional discrimination found in the legal codes and official practices of many Middle Eastern countries. The past year has seen brutal atrocities committed against Christians and others because of their religious identity by terrorist groups such as the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS. These incidents underscore the gravity of the situation.
Maayan Lubell: In Netanyahu’s fourth term, what’s next for Israeli settlements?— A day before his surprise election victory last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stood against the backdrop of a construction site in Har Homa, a towering settlement in the occupied West Bank, and pledged to go on building. The next week, however, his office ordered local authorities to put the brakes on plans to erect hundreds of new homes at Har Homa, a settlement Netanyahu authorized in 1997 during his first term in the face of fierce international opposition. It was an example of the tightrope Netanyahu walks between his political allegiances and the international community, whose faith in his commitment to a two-state solution with the Palestinians – including a halt to settlement-building – is wearing thin.
SnyderTalk Comment: The so-called “settlements” are in ancient Judea and Samaria. They are part of the Promised Land. We’ll see what happens, but the land belongs to Israel.
#####
________________________________________
#####
#####
________________________________________
#####
Tehran to showcase ‘839’ Holocaust cartoons in order to highlight Western hypocrisy
Dutch Soccer fans boast Nazi heritage at game, chant ‘Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas’
‘Arab League to submit timetable for an end to Israel’s occupation’
Watch: Israel threatened with ‘electronic Holocaust’ on April 7
‘Anonymous’ hacker campaign against Israeli sites causes minimal damage – so far
Palestinians: Israel cuts back Gaza’s lumber imports
Defense Minister Ya’alon: Iran Deal Will Increase Iran’s Appetite
Palestinian Authority Rejects Israel’s Partial Transfer of Tax Funds
Obama: Iran sanctions can be reimposed if Tehran violates nuclear deal
Kahlon said to favor inviting Herzog into Netanyahu-led coalition
Analysis: Has China become a stabilizing force?
#####
________________________________________
#####
‘Egypt is Preparing for War with Israel’
Haredi Workers Encouraged to Integrate – Then Are Rejected
Christians Struggle to Maintain Legacy versus ISIS
Gaza War Caused Spike in Demands to Be Drafted as Lookouts
‘I Lay Injured with My Hand on the Grenade Pin’
Abduction Pranksters Give Two Differing Versions of Events
California State Representative Visits Shomron
Likud, Jewish Home Mull Dethroning Leftist ‘Junta’
Jewish Home Presents List of Demands to Likud
Israel Cuts Gazan Lumber Shipments, Importers Say
Israel Proposes New Terms for Final Iran Deal
IDF to Sink $25M into New Rocket Alert System
Advocate for IDF Soldiers Receives Death Threats
How Might a Middle East Nuclear Arms Race Look?
Hamas Nabs ISIS Man after Yarmouk Beheadings
Turkey Lifts Twitter Ban, Offending Photos Removed
The US is Under-Arming the Kurds against ISIS
Despite Rivalry with Iran, Saudis Welcome Deal
#####
________________________________________
#####
#####
________________________________________
#####
Pew numbers on world faiths add up to more stark news for Jews
White House: Iran would never agree to give up nuclear program
What Jordanians talk about when they talk about Israel
Obama: Weakened Israel would be ‘failure’ for my presidency
Obama sold the Sunnis down the river, Saudi media say
Netanyahu on US TV: Iran’s missile program aims at you, not us
Israeli document poses 10 key questions about ‘irresponsible, dangerous’ Iran deal
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said ‘preparing for war’ in case deal collapses
Constructive Israeli action, not lobbying, seen vital in wake of Iran deal
Leading GOP senator: Let next president negotiate Iran deal
Iran nuclear agreement risks projecting US weakness
The 20th Knesset — parliament of a splintered, tribal Israel
Saudi Arabia ‘welcomes’ framework deal with Iran
After university attack, Kenyan warplanes strike al-Shabab positions
As IS beheads Palestinian refugees in Syria, Hamas slams ineffectual Abbas
SnyderTalk Comment: ISIS is open for business in Gaza. You trust a Palestinian, either Hamas or Fatah, at your own risk.
#####
________________________________________
#####
State of Syrian refugee camp ‘beyond inhumane’: UN official
Current tensions “more desperate than ever” for Palestinian refugees in Syria: UN official
UN demands access to Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus
Jury Gets Boston Bombing Case, Will Decide Tsarnaev’s Fate
How Rolling Stone Failed on Rape Story, According to Columbia Report
Highlighted Letter: Susan Rice unfit for duties
Kenya strikes on Al-Shabaab targets unrelated to Garissa attack, source says
Indonesian court rejects appeals of Australians facing execution
Boko Haram Attacking Cameroon for Supplies
Boko Haram disguised as preachers kill at least 24 in Nigeria
What It Takes to Make People Care About NSA Surveillance
Jim Rickards on currency wars and QE—Video
#####
________________________________________
#####
SnyderTalk Comment: Kineret is the Sea of Galilee. It’s more than 600 feet below sea level.
#####
________________________________________
#####
Iran and Turkey, from where to where…
Obama: Nuclear deal can’t hinge on Iran’s Israel stance
As framework agreement with Iran is debated, talk of war now seems distant
Iran sanctions phaseout still to be negotiated
Pakistan, Turkey take lead in seeking to contain Yemen fighting
Turkey: “Zero Problems with Neighbors”
SnyderTalk Comment: Is this a joke? No. It’s propaganda.
Agreement Allows Iran to Engage in Nuclear Activities that Have No Civilian Necessity
U.S Forces Building In Eastern Europe To Counter Russia
Putin’s Ukraine War Is About Founding a New Russian Empire
Moscow criticises ‘US attempts to isolate Russia’ over Victory Day events
Ordinary folk take up military training over Russia threat
China reportedly completes 3 advanced nuclear attack subs
#####
________________________________________
Email Distribution List:
I have created an email distribution list that I use to notify people when I post a new SnyderTalk. If you would like to be on that list, send your email address to nhsny@yahoo.com, and put “add me to your distribution list” in the subject line. If you know others who are interested in SnyderTalk content, tell them to send me their email address, and I’ll put them on the list.
________________________________________
Exodus 4: 27-31
27 Now Yahweh said to Aaron, “Go to meet Moses in the wilderness.” So he went and met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28 Moses told Aaron all the words of Yahweh with which He had sent him, and all the signs that He had commanded him to do. 29 Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the sons of Israel; 30 and Aaron spoke all the words which Yahweh had spoken to Moses. He then performed the signs in the sight of the people. 31 So the people believed; and when they heard that Yahweh was concerned about the sons of Israel and that He had seen their affliction, then they bowed low and worshiped.
SnyderTalk Comment: Read His Name is Yahweh. Yahweh is always concerned about His children.
________________________________________
His Name is Yahweh explains why the Name of God, Yahweh, is so important. It’s available in eBook format and in paperback. It’s also available for free in PDF format.
- God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This [Yahweh] is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exodus 3: 15)
- “Therefore behold, I am going to make them know—this time I will make them know My power and My might; and they shall know that My name is Yahweh.” (Jeremiah 16: 21)
- “Behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘Yahweh our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23: 5-6)
- Yeshua said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” (John 8: 58)
________________________________________
#####
Click here to download the entire audio presentation for free and with no strings attached. Share it as often as you want.
#####
________________________________________
Blessings in the Book of Revelation is a book that you need to read, especially now. There are blessings throughout the Scriptures but Revelation is the only book in the Bible actually containing a specific blessing for reading it. It’s repeated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end. This is the reason that I believe Revelation should be the first step toward studying biblical prophecy. Though not easy to do, Revelation can be broken down and understood by anyone, not just the academic elite. So, Revelation’s blessings are for everyone. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
________________________________________
Other Books by Neil Snyder
- Stand! is a suspense novel that exposes the lies, corruption, and greed underlying the theory that man-made CO2 emissions are responsible for global warming. Professor Wes Carlyle and Karen Sterling, his research collaborator, carefully scan the audience for their would-be attacker—a member of the enviro-gestapo who has been following them for days. Wes spots his man in the back of the room leaning against the wall. Suddenly, another man in the audience steps forward and moves toward Karen at a menacing pace. With a vicious stroke, he swings a billy club at her head. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
- What Will You Do with the Rest of Your Life? deals with a question that every Christian has to consider: what should I do with my life? Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
- Falsely Accused is a true story about a young woman who was accused of committing a double homicide. It’s about a travesty of justice, and it reveals Yahweh intervening in the life of a believer to rescue her from danger in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Everyone will enjoy the book, but young people in particular need to read it because the mistakes made that led to the problem could have been avoided. They were the kinds of mistakes that young people are prone to make. As they say, forewarned is forearmed. Click here to order the eBook. Click here to order the paperback.
