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 Please reconsiderU.S. mindset bears almost no resemblance to the Iran of today By Alan Hale February 6, 2002 The Iranian To my Iranian friends, I am sure you aware that, during his speech a couple of nights ago, George W. Bush made some insulting and belligerent statements about Iran. I was ashamed and sickened by these comments, and I have sent the following letter to him. Frankly, I doubt if he sees this, or will pay any attention to what I have to say, but I have also sent this to some members of the U.S. Congress that I know personally, and perhaps they might listen. At the very least, I wanted to let my friends in Iran know that not all of us Americans support his statements and his implied future actions. You have my permission -- and encouragement -- to share this with anyone you wish, including the Iranian media and government. Sincerely, Alan From: Alan Hale Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2002 14:09:58 -0700 To: <president@whitehouse.gov> Subject: State of the Union/relationship with Iran Dear President Bush, Please allow me to introduce myself. I am a native and resident of the state of New Mexico, and I am a professional scientist, having earned a Ph.D. in astronomy from New Mexico State University in 1992. As a scientist I experienced my proverbial "15 minutes of fame" five years ago when Comet Hale-Bopp, of which I am a co-discoverer, was shining in Earth's nighttime skies. While I am not an expert on political affairs I do my best to keep informed of the various issues that affect our nation and our planet.  I am writing to express my alarm to some of the statements
made in your State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 29. In particular, I
am referring to your statements about the nation of Iran, i.e., that it is part of
an "axis of evil" and that it "exports terror." Such statements
appear to reflect the common American mindset of Iran that is based upon events that
happened over twenty years ago. I know that mindset well, for at one time I shared
it. I was a midshipman in my senior year at the U.S. Naval Academy at the time of
the U.S. Embassy seizure in Tehran in 1979, and I can still vividly recall the half-serious
"Tehran Movement Order" signs that proliferated in Bancroft Hall afterwards.
I even considered it within the realm of possibility that my graduating class would
be graduated early so that we could be sent off to Iran and fight, and I was ready
to do so if that occurred. But that was then, and this is now, and I can assure you and any American who cares to listen that the elements of that 20-year-old mindset bear almost no resemblance to the Iran of today. I say this from personal experience, as I have made two visits to Iran within the last three years. Four years ago I became intrigued by President Mohammad Khatami's call for a "dialogue of civilizations" and his request for exchange visits between our respective countries and, keeping in mind the notoriety that fate had bestowed upon me and with the knowledge that a total solar eclipse would be crossing that country in August 1999, I conceived the idea of bringing a delegation of American scientists, students, and educators to Iran for that event. With the collaboration of and assistance from the organization Search for Common Ground I was successful in bringing such a group for a stay of 1 1/2 weeks at that time. As a result of that visit my scientific colleagues in Iran decided to host an international astronomy conference in the city of Esfahan in July 2000, and I was invited to bring another delegation over for that event. Again with the assistance of Search for Common Ground, I was able to do so, for a stay of one  week.
Our reception from the Iranian people was nothing less than overwhelming. Our host
organizations, the Zirakzadeh Science Foundation in Tehran and the Adib Astronomical
Society in Esfahan, welcomed us with open arms, and repeatedly went out of their
way to make our stays pleasant and enjoyable. Basic Sciences in Zanjan and Lorestan University in Khorramabad, as well as at the astronomy conference in Esfahan, were intelligent and articulate, and as friendly and gracious as one could imagine. Perhaps most telling were the random "person on the street" encounters, for example, a man from Esfahan named Hossein who, on a moment's notice, dropped what he was doing so that he could chauffeur me and another American scientist around the city in search of an Internet site (and then help us search for the rest of our group afterwards), and a young gentleman in Esfahan who stopped me in a restaurant to tell me "After 20 years, it's great to have Americans back in Iran again!" Everywhere we went we encountered these types of reactions, with the Iranian people continuously going out of their way to reassure us that they liked and welcomed Americans. I and the members of the delegations continue to correspond regularly with the friends and colleagues we have made as a result of these visits. After the horrifying events of September 11 I received numerous letters of sympathy and support from friends and colleagues around the world; many of these, and among the strongest, came from my friends in Iran, who were as shocked and horrified by that day's tragic events as was I. Iran is not a perfect country. It is a complex society and culture, the complexities and nuances of which cannot be summarized in a sound bite or displayed on a bumper sticker. Its society and government confront numerous internal (and external) challenges, and there are disagreements within that society and government on how best to confront these -- but the same can also be said  about the American society and government. I accept that the American
government may have legitimate grievances and differences with the government of
Iran -- but perhaps the reverse is true as well. These should all be addressed and
resolved in negotiations conducted within an atmosphere of mutual respect, and not
by threats and intimidation which, if escalated, can bring about hostilities that,
among many other things, will shatter the peacemaking endeavors that I and many citizens
of both countries have struggled to implement.The people of Iran are not our enemies. They are human beings who desire peace, and a secure future for their children, as much as does any American. With this is mind, I urge you in the strongest possible terms to reconsider your comments in the State of the Union address, and instead to lead in genuine efforts to build a mutually respectful peace between our nation and Iran and, indeed, with all the nations of the world. Sincerely, Alan Hale Cloudcroft, New Mexico
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