Editor's Letter take your eyewear to new heights Hamas, Iran And Israel p resident Obama's intent to engage the Israelis and Palestinians in concrete peace talks rings hollow. The Palestinians, who are literally Arabs, lack a common government or authority. When Obama tells reporters, "As hard as it is, as difficult as it may be, the prospect of peace still exists:' he's technically correct. But neither the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank, nor Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, will recognize Israel as the Jewish state. Hamas further is sworn to Israel's destruction. , At an April 21 press conference in Washington, Obama said he hoped to I see "gestures of good faith" on all sides. "The parties in the region probably have a pretty good recognition of what intermediate steps can be taken to encourage confidence-building mea- sures:' he said. That's a pipedream. Hamas brands Jews as inherently evil and Israel a spreading cancer. Religious leader Ziad Abu Alhaj reinforced llamas' rac- ist ideology in an April 3 sermon on Hamas TV. According to Palestinian Media Watch, a respected Israeli watchdog orga- nization, Alhaj declared, "Who is it that is leading the world today in the vicious, all-encompassing war against Islam and Muslims? The answer is clear: It is the Jewish nation." He said hatred for Muhammad and Islam — and thus Muslims — is burrowed within Jews. Ironically, the cleric once took part in a global forum of "imams and rabbis for peace" whose delegates vowed to condemn any negative representation of each other's faiths, including incitement. Hamas' interpretation of Islam pins Jews as a global threat. Allah's will desires all Jewish children to be exterminated, the cleric preached. "No Jew or Zionist will be left on the face of this Earth," he vowed. Such vile inflames at a time when the Middle East is a pow- der keg. On Monday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas not only affirmed his rejection of the Jewish state, but also urged Israel to commit to a Palestinian state. Amid this tenuous setting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu announced last week he won't demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state in order to renew peace talks. I understand his logic. Such recognition isn't crucial to rekindling a dialogue with the Palestinians though it is essential, like Bibi says, to advancing diplomacy and reaching accord. Bibi wisely puts the onus on the Palestinians. Despite Abbas' bluster, the P.A. might wave a small olive branch. Hamas might, too, if you believe rumblings about it secretly considering discussion with Israel. Disconcerting Ech The cry for Israel's annihilation because of its "racist soul" is a popular refrain. Alhaj and Obama weighed in on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict within days of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's April 20 diatribe scolding Israel for being "racist" and, consequently, "appalling" and "harmful." The backdrop — the United Nations' World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance — enabled Ahmadinejad to bring world attention to his rant. He strives to hide his hatred of Jews by deriding Zionism. Ahmadinejad is dangerous not because of his presidential title, but because of who gives him his anti-Zionist, anti-West pedestal: Iran's ruling clerics. Believe it: Iran has the potential to produce a nuclear bomb, although precisely when is subject to debate. In direct viola- tion of several U.N. resolutions, the Persian nation continues to chalk up nuclear enrichment and technological warfare advances, both vital to atomic arms. Jews the world over must stay vigilant because of who will control the Iranian levers of atomic energy: the Revolutionary Guard. The Guard works with Iranian mullahs led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah All Khamenei to secure the revolution through enforcement of Islamic codes and morals. Iran's power derives from the growth of Islamic fundamen- talism, which also has well-nourished roots in Lebanon, Gaza, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Jordan and Afghanistan. Behind this surge are the region's corrupt, repressive regimes that cannot pro- vide jobs — and thus no hope for the masses of poor people. A Real Threat On an American Israel Public Affairs Committee visit to Metro Detroit last year, Professor Jonathan Adelman of the University of Denver's Graduate School of International Studies mused: "Were it a matter of one more nation acquir- ing nuclear weaponry, like India and Pakistan did in 1998, Israel's military superiority would be a sufficient deterrent. But in the case of Iran, the mullahs would gladly sacrifice lives from a Zionist counter assault if their bomb attack ultimately could destroy Israel." The point: We're dealing with a creed that believes Jews and Zionism have no right to exist in the Middle East. Israel is just 8,000 square miles and 7.4 million people. Seventy percent of its 5.5 million Jews live in four cities: Jerusalem, Haifa, Tel Aviv and Beer Sheva. One atomic bomb hitting Tel Aviv could take out 300,000 to 500,000 people. America and other major powers — like the European Union, Russia and China especially — hold the key to tougher economic sanctions on businesses that essentially underwrite Iran's energy and military sectors. The civilized world can start by not buying Iranian oil, a tactic that would resound through the Central Bank of Iran. Stricter travel and trade sanctions also must come into play. President Obama maintains his outreach to Tehran, but harbors no illusions. "Iran is a very complicated country with a lot of different power centers," he told reporters on April 21. To intensify real pressure on Iran, the American people must convince Congress and Obama to push the Islamic Republic up on our nation's international agenda. Remember: llamas, Israel's archenemy, draws some marching orders — and funding — from behind the black robes of Tehran. Meanwhile, American, Israeli and allied interests remain on high alert. ROBERT MARC* PRADA r (!6 - 95 CHROME HEARTS FREUDENHAUS MYKITA PERSOL RAY BAN LAFONT L?:/ , LUNOR* BEAUSOLEIL (ORIGINAL VINTAGE AND CONTEMPORARY EYEWEAR AND ACCESSORIES FEATuRING CHARLEY HARPER PRINTS AND RARE; VINTAGE- JEWELRY FROM THE COLLECTION OF JOANN GOLDBERG 245 WEST MAPLE` JUST EAST F BATES, OWNTOWN IRMINGHAM 8-646-669 ❑ 0 : LI 1- Z z a O0 0-! Does America take Iran too lightly? Would Iran actually bomb Israel? MOST MAJOR OPTICAL INSURANCE ACCEPTED, INCLUDING VSP'M April 30 2009 A5