So, the good folks over at FP Passport are unhappy with my recent post on the gullibility of the IAEA and its defenders. I should preface this by saying that I'm a huge fan of the FP Passport, it's a must-read every day, but I'm compelled to defend myself here. It seems that Blake Hounsnell is upset with me for a couple of reasons. First, I attributed the views of his author, Eric Hundman, to the blog as a whole. Hounshell writes, "'Passport' is an inanimate object that doesn't have views. Individual contributors to the blog have views, and they often differ." This strikes me as a ludicrous point to make--if somebody writes something on the WWS, critics can fairly respond that 'the WWS says.' And people invariably attribute the views of WEEKLY STANDARD authors to the magazine itself--this is the nature of our business.
Second, Hounshell says that I'm guilty of "selective quotation." Yes, I am. As is anyone who uses quotations rather than publishing another person's writing or remarks in full. Quotation, by its very nature, is selective. And that is why our ancestors invented ellipses, and why Al Gore invented the internet--both of which I put to good use by showing that there was text that had been left out, and by linking to the original post so folks could read it for themselves.
And finally, Hounshell's only reasonable point of contention to my mind: that I was wrong to say that the IAEA is "all trust, and no verify." If FP Passport Hounshell wants to take that position, he certainly can try and make the case. But the fact of the matter is, Iran has never ratified the additional protocol to the NPT that would allow the IAEA to conduct snap inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities (neither has the United States, but I'm pretty comfortable with double standards here). The effect of this is that the IAEA must provide advance notice of all inspections, which pretty much defeats the point of inspections--except in the case that the Iranians leave blueprints for nuclear warheads laying about, which they did two years ago.
Also, the IAEA is only allowed to inspect declared nuclear sites. I do not believe that the Iranians have declared all their nuclear facilities, and I think it would be foolish to assume otherwise. So I think I'm on pretty solid ground saying that the IAEA cannot verify compliance with any type of agreement barring the Iranians coming clean and allowing snap inspections--and that just isn't going to happen.
Now can I please have my passport back?
