One History-Focused Guy’s Take on the U.S.-Iran MOU

ALPERN AT LARGE - If you’re one of those who can’t hear the words “Donald Trump” without screaming at the top of your lungs, then this piece probably isn’t for you. Ditto if you’re someone with a collection of red MAGA hats and Trump-related merch at home.

Like it or not, I’m a moderate to conservative “R” with lots of hard-red “R’s”, hard, blue “D’s” and a few libertarians within and amongst my family and )friends. I occasionally watch Fox, and I watch CNN even more, and sometimes MSNBC…and read everything from Breitbart to the Huffington Post all day long.

I own no MAGA hats, never saw a single show of “The Apprentice”, and there’s a figurative dent in my forehead getting ever-deeper after slapping myself in the forehead for years in response to Trump’s boorish statements and social media posts.

I’m also a physician who loves both science and history—by nature I seek objectivity and critical thinking, and PROOF. Theories on both sides (or even 3-4 sides to a given issue) are always the best way to try to figure out the Truth, to say nothing of an open mind that allows for that “Truth” to be exposed as mere Propaganda.

ENTER THE MOU BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP AND THE IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER AYATOLLAH MOJTABA KHAMEINI.

Donald Trump is focusing on the upcoming mid-term elections (with his numbers, and the GOP’s poll numbers down), and Mojtaba Khameini just saw his father and family bombed to pieces (if Mojtaba Khameini is even still alive, maimed though he is reported to be).

Inflation and the American economy are of concern to Donald Trump (he’s into business by far more than he is into politics, and everything is a deal or business rivalry to him), and Iran is in serious trouble financially. Politically things are quite dire for all sides. Gas prices…huge. Stock exchange numbers…huge.

Europe’s concerns? Realizing that they have no military to speak of as once they did, and that the world is moving on beyond Europe’s centuries-old reputations as world leaders.

Russia’s concerns? Realizing that the Ukrainian invasion was waaaaaaaaaaaay more than was expected, and that the weapons they sold to Iran were smashed to pieces by the far superior American technologies that belittled Russian know-how. Bashar Assad is no longer running Syria, and Syria’s new leader is BFF’s with Trump.

China’s concerns? Between Venezuela and Iran, their oil/energy access is enormously threatened (crisis levels, really), and their own weapons and influence throughout the Mideast and the world is way, way, WAY down.

Cuba? Only a matter of time before it goes the way of Venezuela.

Taiwan? Staying independent of China for the immediate and unforeseeable future.

Hamas and Hezbollah—smashed and hated by more of their neighbors than they’ve ever seen, as well as their Iranian sponsors—are now trying and planning and praying to rebuild, but Israel and the U.S. took them out, and Arab nations throughout the world are reconsidering the Abraham Accords to build new bridges between former enemies.

Through it all? The message that Trump gives his “deals” to his enemies of either “be my friend and make money, or be my enemy and make war, so choose between being rich or being dead.”

I suppose that the idea of “Making Money is More Fun Than Making War” isn’t that bad an idea—look at what happened in Venezuela, and look at what Trump wants to repeat in Cuba, and look at all the Western Hemisphere nations suddenly working more with Trump in the U.S. and moving AWAY from socialism.

(For those of you who don’t know who economic libertarian Argentinian President Javier Milei is, you probably need to, because arguably he’s as big a player and gamechanger to the Western Hemisphere as Trump…but I digress).

Trump is NOT like former President George W. Bush—he does NOT want foreign conflicts with many American boots on the ground, and his potential quagmires are ended with gruff, tough, heartburn-laden, seething-anger-causing deals that avoids widespread bombing in favor of forceful economic expansion to all sides.

Trump is all-too-often a jerk, boorish and unnecessarily alienating to more people than can be counted (his supporters too often have to grit their teeth and tolerate him, rather than cozy up to him)…and therefore “supporting” Trump does carry a terrible cost of hearing him say awful things even if one can understand why Trump carries so much rage.

Because to “support Trump” is more to “support his policies” than support him, personally.

Hence the leaders of Europe and Israel have been mercilessly slammed and insulted in entirely tactless, childish, and downright offensive manners by Trump…yet these same leaders are entirely unwilling to insult Trump in return. At least not verbally…and their now singing his praises whenever they’re publicly asked to do so.

Europe and NATO have been exposed as paper tigers, and Israel has been forced to work with many of its neighbors for the immediate future. Some might call that great diplomacy, and others might call that anything but intimidation to our allies (who arguably should be treated with more kindness and friendship).

What did NOT happen when Iran and its leaders were bombed to smithereens?

1. No uprising of the Iranian people, as was foretold by many.
2. A large segment of American political leadership, some Republican, but mostly Democrat, who appeared to despise Trump so much that they wanted Iran (our mortal enemy, like it or not, as much as any in our nation’s history) to win this conflict just so that Trump (and, by extension, our nation) would have a Loss.
3. Our friends the Kurds were NOT helpful.
4. Iran was NOT another quick Venezuelan win.
5. Europe, as aforementioned, was NOT a helpful ally and was exposed as feckless and weak.
6. Israel (and its leadership, such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) was able to have many of its dreams come true with respect to obliterating and killing Iranian leaders, including the current Ayatollah’s father (Ali Khameini) they’ve despised for years…but now has come to realize that their wars can’t be endless.
7. The Arab nations have been forced to realize who their friends are, and where they stand with Iran, and are being dragged kicking and screaming to a potential expansion of the Abraham Accords with Israel, and with United States oversight.
8. Russia, China, and the United Nations have had their credibility and recognized power brought down about ten notches. Ditto for Brazil, Turkey, India, and all the BRICS gang who thought they’d mean something in this evolving 21st century.

Enter the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding):

1. No Iranian nukes—except THIS time, the Iranian leaders who brought us to this conflict are DEAD. The Iranian hardliners are still in power, but they’ve been currently brought to bear and humiliated (no matter what trash talk they spew).
2. It’s laughable that somehow the U.S. is supposed to prevent Lebanon from being a battleground to make Iran happy, but nothing is being stated how Israel should also no longer be a battleground…which means that Israel and Iran will inevitably fight each other again (but the world won’t be too quick to take sides now).
3. Lebanon is ABSOLUTELY NOT Gaza, and Hezbollah is NOT tolerated or supported in Lebanon as is Hamas in Gaza. The innocent civilian casualties in Lebanon are different people than the majority of Gazans who supported Hamas, and therefore Israel and Lebanon better work together to end Hezbollah’s grip in southern Lebanon, or Israel will ultimately lose the P.R war in Lebanon.
4. For those unaware of the Sunni hardliners who now run Syria, they are NOT friends of Iran and will not allow a Iran-Lebanon pipeline of resources and fighters as did former Syrian President Bashar Assad—they’re BFF’s with Trump, not Iran.
5. Qatar is still going to foment antisemitism and Israel-hatred in the West, and will certainly be Iran’s new BFF, but they know that—as with Israel, and despite their pricey jet “friendship prize” to Donald Trump—they’re going to have to focus on money and commerce instead of promoting violence (and the West is now on to Qatar, with Jew-hatred fought vigorously at American college campuses).

So should any of us “like” this MOU?

Not really—I know I personally do NOT “like” it one bit, regardless of how I think it might be pragmatic, beneficial, or optimistic for the region and world.

But this Memorandum of Understanding is NOT a treaty of friendship, and the President is NOT asking for the MOU to be “liked” so much as accepted.

The MOU pushes for a hard peace (whether anyone is ready for it or not), and with both the understanding that this MOU will almost certainly be violated immediately and repeatedly…

…as well as the understanding that this MOU is an ugly, UGLY patchwork of pragmatic efforts to keep things in place until the November midterm elections.

(Kenneth S. Alpern, M.D, is a dermatologist who has served in clinics in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties, and is a proud husband and father. He was active for 20 years on the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC) as a Board Member focused on Planning and Transportation, and helped lead the grassroots efforts of the Expo Line as well as connecting LAX to MetroRail. His latest project is his fictional online book entitled The Unforgotten Tales of Middle-Earth, and can be reached at [email protected]. The views expressed in this article are solely those of Dr. Alpern.)