Originally Posted by
dr dre
Sounds like a perfect neocon fantasy. Without turning this into a political discussion thread, there's plenty of doubt who was responsible for gas attacks in Syria (and is that different to western countries using agent orange and white phosphorus or even conventional bombs?), Iran's nuclear ambitions were never certain and have been curtailed via an agreement that most neocons hated anyway (and they get away with calling the Americans the great satan considering what US foreign policy towards Iran in the 20th century), and Israel the only democracy? Maybe but a lot of people don't like their actions towards the Palestinians, and that's certainly a debate that is beyond this thread.
No fantasy.
Assad has form on using chlorine gas on his own people in the past and stands to gain most by continuing that policy, it quacks like a duck. This is different to conventional weapons in so far as it is specifically outlawed. The mode of death is from inland drowning caused by severe blistering of the lungs and often causes blindness to those unfortunate enough to survive. This is entirely different to agent orange, as agent orange was a defoliant. Noone tries to commit a genocide with weed killer.
Not sure what you're specifically referring to in regard to US foreign policy toward Iran, other than the fact that the U.K. and the US backed the Shah who was modernising the Iranian economy, he was hated by the hard liners for instilling western liberal values including women's freedom. There are pictures taken after the removal of the Shah showing women protesting in the streets against being forced to cover themselves in public, you don't see that anymore. The Iranian dictatorship hates western values as they are antithetical to Muslim values. The US is viewed as an easy target as an example of a country espousing these western values.
And Israel. Palestine was Israeli long before Islam even existed. Iran and other Muslim states hate Israel because the Koran specifically singles out Jews for destruction. Mohammed demands the beheading of Jews in retaliation for Jewish scholars refusing to recognise him as a prophet in the seventh century. Everything else is just a means to an end, a justification for that destruction.