Last week Sec. of State Clinton made her rounds of the Persian Gulf. She spoke at universities, met with dignitaries (Thank God she didn’t curtsy to the king of Saudi Arabia – Glenn Beck would be flipping out), and negotiated with foreign ministers behind closed doors.

Whether visiting in Doha or Riyadh Clinton’s message was the same, a tougher international stance on Iran’s nuclear program. As the Obama administration seeks Russian and Chinese support for new sanctions on Ahmadinejad’s pet nuclear program, Hilary talked about the importance of non-proliferation and a future without nuclear weapons to college students.

But before I go any further let’s consider the following. The world is quite different and America is not the superpower she is today. America’s arch-international-nemesis is country X. And it just so happens our enemy is the world’s preeminent power. Country X has once toppled our popularly elected government and has allied against us with the only nuclear powers in the region. In the last decade Country X even condoned the use of poison gas by our enemies on our combat troops. To make matters worse, close to 200,000 of Country X's are presently waging wars in neighboring countries. We are virtually surrounded and justifiably apprehensive, so what do we do?

…We invest in international politics’ ultimate equalizer, the nuclear bomb.

Understanding this scenario is crucial to understanding the fears of many Iranians. Now, of course the unstable religious-political zealots in Tehran heighten the risk that Iran might act irrationally. However, Iranians certainly must worry when Bush confuses Iraq with Iran, John McCain belts out his hit “Bomb, Bomb, Iran” solo, or when, as recently as last week, Sarah Palin unveiled Obama’s Iranian invasion/campaign strategy for 2012.

The Iranian people are confronting the unknowns of both homegrown and international menaces and for the average Iranian, without fanatical religious beliefs or a deep seeded hatred of the West, there is a fear not only of a radical national dictatorship, but of America’s historically anti-Iranian posture as well.

This “pick your poison” conundrum is on the minds of many in the Islamic Republic. Thus American foreign policy needs to take into account a nation’s fears as well as its aspirations.

President Obama has so far done particularly well in affirming America’s opposition to Tehran’s fanatical policies, yet has not exploited Iranian protests as an excuse to meddle in Iranian affairs (Although it would be naïve to believe that the CIA is not in someway involved in recent political uprisings in Iran).

The Iranian People want neither a corrupt tyrant nor a western puppet; what they crave is a government they can trust. I believe the Obama administration is acknowledging this desire for self-determination, but is keeping a close eye on Iran’s troublesome leadership.