I mean you said "There sure are a lot of nuclear engineers (or were) in a country that isn't pursuing a nuclear weapon. " How am I supposed to know you meant only individuals developing nuclear weapons? Especially as that is a contested point - given that our intelligence community has stated that they aren't pursuing a nuclear weapon.91AggieLawyer said:Quote:
Iran has had a nuclear program since the 50's, that actually expanded under the Shah. They've been pursuing nuclear power for a long time. Nuclear engineers don't learn how to make a bomb in engineering school - I know plenty of nuclear engineers (at least beyond theory). Iran actually is one of the most educated countries in the region, lots of engineers, PhDs, chemists, etc.
Nice attempt to deflect what I said, but I really wasn't talking about nuke engineers that primarily work on nuke power plants, nuke subs, etc. I also think you knew that and knew exactly what I was saying, even if I didn't use precise language. Name one Iranian nuclear engineer who wasn't working on a bomb program who the Israelis have knocked off.
What are the nuclear engineers in Iran working on if not weapons related projects? It sure isn't a civilian nuclear energy project. Their current energy costs make nuke power not feasible. That isn't the case with the US.
Iran isn't building a civilian nuclear program
As far as the historical Iran nuke programs, are any of the folks who were working in those programs and under the Shah still on the Iranian payroll?
Further, how am I, you, or anyone else supposed to know which nuclear engineers are working on a bomb program and which aren't? Not sure if you are serious when you're asking me that question.
You also point out that there are a lot of nuclear engineers and scientists in Iran, but can you give me a number of how many there are? How many is too many for a country of almost 100 million people? Mexico has the same number of nuclear power plants as Iran, but a cursory search shows they have 7 universities that offer both under grad and graduate level nuclear engineering programs.
And again, not sure you can say they aren't working on nuclear energy, as they do have a nuclear plant. And just because they have massive oil and gas reserves doesn't mean they don't want to diversify. Many cities in Iran have the worst pollution in the world. Nuclear energy is clean energy. Why wouldn't they want clean energy? Regarding cost, most nuclear plants world wide are heavily subsidized by governments - especially the upfront cost of construction.
Also, you posted from the Jewish News Syndicate. Unless you are going to believe everything posted by Al Jazeera, or PressTV, I'm going to decline on taking it at face value.