Is Israel about to strike at Iran?

As for Arab states lacking industrial infrastructure and "intellectual depth", you really need to update you info. Industry in the Arab world is as advanced, and in many areas even more advanced, as that of Iran but unlike it, it is concentrated towards developement not armament that is why on average Arab economies are much more stronger than the Iranian and the economies much more healthier.   Al-Jassas

So what does the Arab world produce and develop?  Its own arms? Its own industrial metals? Its own cars and trucks? its own utility and electronic? its own textiles? its own bicycles? its own agricultural equipment? much of its own medical supplies? its own semi-conductors? its own precision equipment? How advanced are the Arabs in medical research? Can you extract your own oil? Iran is at the forefront of stem cell research.  Iranian scientists are almost always in the top five on international olympiad competitions in physics, maths, chemistry, robotics, etc. These scientists are spawned from a rich scientific and academic tradition with bases in technically brilliant universities such as tehran sharrif and tabriz universities. 

And on top of this Iran is subject to economic sanctions unlike any other country in the region and possibly worldwide except Myanmar.  you probably shudder to think how prosperous iran would be without them. Don't discount armaments because the defense industry has in many cases proven to be a source for civilian product innovation, such as aircraft (Iran now produces civilian aricraft).  They say 60% of iran's exports today are from oil and they're right, but consider that in 1998 when oil was $10/b it was a similar ratio, whether you like it or not that is real development.

You have oil which you sell to the west and the money you earn is spent either investing in the west or buying western goods at inflated prices (such as yaughts and armaments obsolete in the West which are just sold at infalted prices to recoup the R&D spend by western companies)... Is that development?  the only Arab academics I have ever been taught by or cited have either been Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian or Iraqi none of these countries except one is a major oil exporter, why is that?  I have often heard other Arabs complain about "khalijis" as lazy and arrogant but there must be more to it than that.  I think it's as Azimuth said before:  Khalij countries are culturally and physically very young and have not had time to develop such a mentality. And the trap that you're in now will mean that it will be a very slow process.


 


Edited by Zagros - 12-Jul-2008 at 02:56