European Appeasement and the Iranian People

While Europe bends and scrapes before the hate-filled Mullahs of Tehran, (while patting themselves on the back as "peaceful progressives"), the Iranian people seethe. In today's WaPO, this column http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57772-2005Apr15.html by Elahé Sharifpour-Hicks, speaks the great truth that Europe fears to hear:

The reasons for the failure of Iran's reform movement will be debated by historians, but what is remarkable is the extent to which the West, the rhetoric of the Bush administration notwithstanding, appears prepared to acquiesce in Iran's slide into immovable authoritarianism, precisely the form of governance that Western leaders, led by the Bush administration, have identified as being conducive to the growth of terrorism elsewhere in the region.

"Acquiesce" is a nice word for "Appease", no? Our author is being too polite...

A call for an end to U.S. pressure means acquiescing to the status quo. The broader Middle East is showing ample evidence of the power of clear U.S. rhetoric in favor of freedom and democracy to bring about change

True enough; those who call for the end of US pressure, especially the Europeans, do not want Iran to change. They can make money this way (see Saddam, Cahvez, China, etc.). Now here's the best policy advice I've seen anywhere in the WaPo in years:

The United States should make clear that it is ready to resume dialogue with the Iranian government on the full range of concerns between the two countries as soon as a government that is representative of the wishes of the Iranian people, freely expressed, is in power in Tehran. That does not include a retread version of former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, or any of his bloodstained acolytes...In the meantime the United States would do well to maintain its efforts to reach out to the Iranian people over the heads of their government

Are you listening, US State Department? Or are you waiting for an editorial in tommorow's New York Times, promoting continued appeasement and validating your failed point of view?