Misplaced pride
The gazillion-dollar Russian-built money-pit-of-a-power-plant
in Bushehr is nothing to be proud of
February 22, 2005
iranian.com
An argument commonly made by Iran's ruling mullahs for pursuing
nuclear technology is Iranian national pride. Along with future
domestic energy needs, the ayatollahs have used national pride
and prestige as their primary propaganda line
to stir up popular support and sentiment for their nuclear ambitions.
My main objective here is not to discuss the validity of IRI's
claims as to the real goals of their nuclear program. I am not
out to argue that the mullahs do or do not really want to possess
The Bomb. And since no one has found clear and undisputable
evidence to the contrary, for the sake of this article, let's assume
that
the mullahs are telling the truth. Let's assume that they are
pouring billions of dollars and thousands of hours of skilled
man hours into this endeavor to create a viable and self-sufficient
nuclear power industry; an industry that will prepare Iran --
a country with one of the
world's largest oil and gas reserves -- for a world without fossil
fuels.
On the surface, a shiny and modern energy industry sounds like
a great idea. But a news flash this morning quickly sobered
me up to the sad reality of every day life in Iran. It showed what
is badly missing and really needed. I saw another earthquake
report from Iran. More than 300 lives were lost in
predictable
and preventable fashion!
Watching the earthquake news reports
on TV, the first thing you notice is the obvious and painful
lack
of equipment, emergency services, infrastructure and
proper building codes. A person from thousands of miles away
can watch
a 30-second news footage on CNN or browse the Internet for
20 minutes and find out, very quickly, what Iran's resident leaders
have chosen
not to see: Iran is a country in desperate need of large
public works and infrastructure overhaul projects in almost every
sector
imaginable.
In one of the most quake-prone countries on Earth, the most
basic building codes are non-existent in all but the largest
cities.
And even in the cities, they are widely ignored and drowned
in the ocean of municipal corruption and mismanagement. A
uniform and capable public emergency assistance system, like fire,
paramedics
and civil defense corps can be a national project of utmost
importance that will improve and save thousands of lives,
way
ahead of the
country needing to worry about generating electricity from
enriched uranium!
Creating and enforcing a protective building
code for
urban as well as rural areas can be a project of national
pride and importance that will create hundreds of thousands of
jobs
and save countless souls in future earthquakes that are
sure to keep
coming one after another in a country like Iran.
 Iran's health care industry and
welfare regime is in ruins. The most basic prescription drugs require
the patient or
a friend
or relative to stand in long queues for days to purchase
substandard medicines at back-breaking prices. Repairing
the health care
system
does not seem to be a matter of national pride and prestige
for the ayatollahs.
Long term urban planning is all but
non-existent in Iran. They do put elaborate plans on paper, but
implementation
is often dragged out for years on end,
due to mismanagement and corruption. For example, with
the exception
of some districts
in Tehran, and one or two other large
cities, modern sewage systems are non-existing. Sewage
goes untreated
and into the ground. Building sewage systems does not
seem to
be a
matter of national pride and prestige for the ayatollahs.
Iran's
roads and highways, though in a much better shape than most
of its neighbor states in the region, are in
need of repairs
and expansion. Thousands of Iranians lose their lives
on the roads annually due to poor road conditions
and safety enforcement.
As a young country faced with the
challenges of a post-revolution baby boom, Iran's elementary,
middle and secondary
schools are over populated, under staffed and in
a state of disrepair. Teachers
are
under paid and in some instances not paid at all.
This is a national
disgrace for a government that is reportedly swimming
in cash, thanks a sharp increase in oil prices in recent years.
Ironically, Iran's energy industry is one of the
better developed and more capable sectors. But the
mullahs
have deemed Iran's
future energy production a priority.
The examples I gave
above and countless others make any reasonable
person question the merits of pouring billions of dollars
into a dubious
nuclear program as a matter of national pride.
How
can you be proud of a gazillion-dollar Russian-built money-pit-of-a-power-plant
in Bushehr that has been sucking petro dollars for generations
without
generating so much as a flash light's worth of
power. How can an Iranian youth be proud of a warehouse
full of gas
centrifuges,
when her elderly mother has to stand in long
lines outside of a
poorly stocked government pharmacy in freezing
weather to buy one month's worth of her heart medicine at
the cost of
two
week's pension
pay?
 So, if Iran's nuclear program is really and
honestly a peaceful project for generating electricity,
then it's seriously mismanaged and badly in need
of resources. It's a bad idea for the wrong nation at the wrong
time. People question their leaders' ability to think
clearly, let alone rule
their great country.
And if the nuclear program's
goals are not peaceful and indeed aimed at
building a nuclear
arsenal,
then
God help us all!
.................... Say
goodbye to spam!
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