Iranian power grows but clouds remain

Citation
Iranian power grows but clouds remain
BBC News
March 13, 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7280938.stm

SUMMARY-
This article is about the power struggle that Iran is having. Iran is very powerful right now and therefore they pose threats to many countries within the Middle East. With Iraq, once a major threat and suppressor of Iran, relying so heavily on the U.S. gave Iran a chance to regain strength and come to have a lot more power. When Saddam Hussein was in control of Iraq he waged an eight-year war on Iran in 1980. With him now out of power, and dead, the war has ended.
Another problem that Iran is having is with their economy. Although Iran seems to be entering a period of relative stability their economy struggles and therefore may have some problems in the future. There was also evidence that Iran had possession of nuclear weaponry programs but the U.S. National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) concluded that it was no longer in use. This is where another struggle occurs. Many countries, neighboring Iran, fear that despite the NIE’s claims, Iran is still using these programs to build nuclear weapons.
REACTIONS-I
a.) Impact of interaction among and within major societies is the theme that pertains to this article because it is about the interaction of Iran with other countries in the Middle East and with the struggle within Iran.
b.) This problem with Iran has been going on for a long while now. For at least eight years. Only now, with the death of Saddam Hussein, the tables have turned and there lies the problem. With the war over between Iraq and Iran, Iran has come to power and can be a threat to al countries.
c.) This is told from the point of view from a non-Iraqi/non-Iranian male who is an outsider.
d.) This document should be approached with caution because an outsider wrote it. Although an outsider can approach something with an open opinion they, possibly, might not have acquired all the necessary information to judge a situation accurately. The author, however, leans to the side of the Iranian people. He hints this with his language. “Of its current antagonist, the United States,” is a direct quote from the article. It implies that the author does not like the U.S. and favors the Iranians. The article also says, “but their friendly relations enable Iran not to worry about any threat from their once aggressive neighbor,” also implies their opinion is that Iraq was bad and Iran was the victim.
e.) There are many missing points of view in this article. For example, there are no points of view of lower class people or any people of the community for that matter. It would have been helpful to hear from any of these people because they could have shared their views on these matters and told their side of the story. It would also be helpful to hear from and Iraqi citizen because they might also give insight to the relationship between Iraq and Iran.
f.) I do agree with the author of this article that Iran could become a very powerful nation and that if they don’t fix their economic problems they could be finished. I also believe that if Iran is not watched that they may develop and build nuclear weapons. If they did in fact build these new weapons then war, as all humans know it would change. War would become nuclear and all of the nations with nuclear weaponry, like Iran, would become extremely dangerous.