So here is a summary of the current events surrounding Iran and try to see if you can figure it out. Its all a bit strange.

Last week or so we had Israel doing some flight tests which was mentioned as an exercise that would be an attack on Iran. Iran showed off their missiles. Oil went fucking crazy, record high. US jumps in and says they will defend Israel, Iran says they will retaliate if attack, and talks about attacking any country that USA has their camp in, to jumpstart their attacks. Everything became a bit scary until...

...suddenly, everything changed. USA sends Burns to the pre-negotiation with Iran and the EU in regards to the nuclear issue, and it seems like a big deal, because USA was never directly at the same table in regards to these discussions. If that was not enough, there are rumors that USA might have a special interest group in Iran for visa processing and shit, which at the moment is handled by the Swiss, so this would be the first time since the 70s that USA officially has diplomats in Iran. While this is not confirmed by the US government, it hasnt been denied by them either yet. Both sides are being positive in their statements to the press.

"We view the fact that a representative from the U.S. is there as a positive development. I hope this positive approach in shape and format also spreads to the content," Mottaki said.

"The United States doesn't have any permanent enemies," Rice said in response to a reporter's question on the unexpected move to send a diplomat to meet directly with Iran's negotiator Saeed Jalili in Geneva on Saturday.

A democrat and a resolution are trying to pass a resolution to:

The House Foreign Affairs Committee may soon begin considering a resolution offered by Reps. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and Mike Pence (R-Ind.) that would prohibit exporting petroleum to Iran and impose "stringent inspection requirements" on all people, vehicles, and cargo going in and out of the country. This legislation has sent off alarm bells throughout the peace and security community.

So whats going on? Is this a sincere effort by the Bush administration to look for a diplomatic solution or is it just an empty gesture so that when war starts, they can claim they tried everything? Were the Israeli exercises an actual indication of possibility of a near war, or just to flex their muscles to make it seem like diplomacy is preferable for the Iranians? Was Iran's response to show they are willing to go to war if push comes to shove, a ploy to push oil prices up, or just trying to show that there were two paths out of this?

How about the effect of this on the candidates? It almost seems like Bush does not really care about McCain. One of the differences between Obama and McCain was that Obama claiming that he will talk with Iran. While the current situation is not really what Obama was talking about, it still seems that it is easier for Obama to say that this is what he wanted.

Bush always claimed he never cared about polls, and we know that he was not really concerned about politics of future candidates or the congress, is this a situation where this might actually be a positive trait to have?

Israel has also going through some radical changes. They are speaking to Syria, Hamas, and Hezbolla. With Hezbolla, they recently released 5 Lebanese prisoners and a 199 dead bodies in exchange of the bodies of 8 Israeli soldiers, even though they initially were saying that no swaps would be made. How can we read this? Is Israeli seriously considering war with Iran, and this is its way of trying tone down Iran's influence in the region as much as possible, so that the war will be more to its benefit, or is it an actual progress towards peace in the region?

The outcome of this weekend seems to have two different paths. Either towards peace and stability in the region or to war. Both paths seem to be realistic and only a few steps in either direction might have a domino effect and result in a bigger change. Only what will the change be?

This is something I like to be positive about. The Bush administation has had a few major changes in personnel in the last few years and they might be more in tune and experienced with foreign policy. At the same time, there has been a lot of internal debates in the Iranian government and they might be looking for a positive way out of the nuclear issue. Bush's term ends this year and Ahmadinijad's term ends next year, and they may both want to leave a better legacy.

I'm hoping the news for the coming weeks, in regards to Iran and USA, will be more positive. Good news has been something in low supply when it comes to the relationship between those two, and who knows, maybe its time now for a change.

Like simple, small changes like this:
"Partnering with the U.S. Olympic Committee, we invited 15 members of the Iranian national table-tennis team to the United States last week. This group included the first female Iranian athletes who've ever been to the U.S. on this program. In cooperation with the National Basketball Association, we'll bring the Iranian Olympic basketball team here next week for the NBA summer league," Burns told Congress today.