Left I on the News

The Washington Post reports on a "confidential diplomatic package backed by Washington and formally presented to Iran on Tuesday [that] leaves open the possibility that Tehran will be able to enrich uranium on its own soil." Really? What's the catch? This:

That concession, along with a promise of U.S. assistance for an Iranian civilian nuclear energy program, is conditioned on Tehran suspending its current nuclear work until the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency determines with confidence that the program is peaceful. U.S. officials said Iran would also need to satisfy the U.N. Security Council that it is not seeking a nuclear weapon, a benchmark that White House officials believe could take years, if not decades, to achieve.

OK, now will someone please tell me how years, or possibly decades, from now, it will be possible to certify that Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon in a way that is different than is possible now? As Hans Blix just said a few days ago (seen on TV, no link), even if Iran says, and means, that it doesn't want nuclear weapons now, a future government might have a different opinion. Which is undeniably true. And which is also undeniably true of every country in the world which doesn't have nuclear weapons. How could it ever be possible to determine that Iran's nuclear program is "peaceful," not just now, but for eternity? Of course it can't. And this whole "offer" is just a joke. Actually, not a joke at all. Just a dipomatic ploy to help justify war.