To the Editor:
In “Iran’s Two-Edged Bomb” (Op-Ed, Feb. 9), Adam B. Lowther proposes five Pollyannaish results of a nuclear-armed Iran. Let me propose a sixth, and far more likely, hellish scenario.
The Arab regimes in the area, realizing that an American nuclear umbrella would not be completely effective, especially against dirty bombs, become more beholden to Iran, rather than to the United States. This could raise oil prices, make the Palestinians less likely to seek peace and increase the authoritarian nature of Arab regimes.
Yes, it would give the American defense industry a shot in the arm, but at an extraordinarily high cost. The risks are simply not worth it.
The Obama and Bush administrations were correct in concluding that a nuclear-armed Iran is unacceptable.
Alan M. Dershowitz
Cambridge, Mass., Feb. 9, 2010
The writer is a professor at Harvard Law School.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 