More thoughts on Iran

Has anyone else noticed the missed opportunity following the disputed Iranian election for President?

We could have taken a more direct approach to the questionable Iran election outcome by reminding the Iranians, and the rest of the world, that we here in the United States know a thing or two about election controversies.

We could have reached out to Iran as experts in post-disputed election etiquette. George Bush could have spoken on how to mount a non-violent campaign to challenge the results. Al Gore could have spoken as a member of the party in power on how not to abuse that power in an effort to manipulate the outcome. We could have offered to send the team that scoured the Florida ballots to Iran if it needed help in the proper counting of ballots.

Norm Coleman and Al Franken could have flown to Iran to show the appropriate way to handle election controversies -- by each announcing themselves the winner, then hiring teams of lawyers, embroiling the courts in conflicting legal arguments, and keeping the voting public unsure about the results for months.

But all that done without a drop of blood being shed.

We could have used our own recent history that is full of claims of voting irregularities and suspect results, but fundamentally void of violence and terror.

It is a clear line of demarcation between our country and theirs. We may make light of our propensity to litigate every dispute, but when you see protesters being shot in the streets, it makes you thankful you live in a country where we litigate instead of conflagrate.