Please, no more goddamn wars

Larison points to a Chronicles article that makes the case:

Instead of plotting a military action against Iran with no clear exit strategy at a prohibitive cost to our core interests, Washington would be well advised to prepare a strategy for dealing with Iran as a nuclear power. Deterring and containing Iran would be easier than deterring and containing the Soviets 50 years ago. The country’s regime, admittedly unpleasant, is neither suicidal nor tainted by the blood of untold millions, as the two communist nuclear powers were. If the Iranian government considers itself threatened by the United States, the solution is to try bilateral diplomacy based on an offer of U.S. security guarantees to Iran in return for a rigorous supervision regime and a formal pledge that Iran refrain from developing nuclear weapons. The Obama administration should make a direct approach to Tehran. A reasonable agreement would also allow Iran to enrich uranium to the extent needed for power generation and accept Iran’s right to the enrichment technology, so long as she agrees to subject her entire nuclear program to international oversight.

I can't believe we're having this conversation. But nevertheless it remains true that probably the best reason to vote Obama in 2012 is that he will be marginally less idiotic on this issue. Still a cold-blooded killer to be sure, but not the staring, glassy-eyed lunatic that the GOP primary will likely vomit up.