The apocalyptic, millenarian vision of the Ayatollahs is reinforced by Jihad-driven school textbooks: “alongside the fighting jihad, there is a spiritual ‘greater jihad’ (Jehad-e akbar) performed by the fighter-martyrs (Defense Readiness, Grade 11, pp. 28-32).” Religious Rulings (Grade 11, p. 12) teaches that the eternal Jihad means a battle in accordance with God’s way, in the defense of Muslims and the oppressed. The chapter on “Defense and Jihad” stipulates that a battle could mean killing, massacring, murdering and/or fighting. Children are urged to join a millenarian frenzy of military training and preparations, constant emergency, blind obedience and actual participation in conflicts, at home and abroad.
“Iranian children study that in times of need, dissimulation and deceptive peace pacts — even with ‘un-Godly, idolatrous governments’ —are proper, but only until such time as the balance of power should change. In fact, we know from Khamenei’s own words, that the nuclear negotiations are predicated on the conclusion of a provisional treaty with an illegitimate [infidel] government, while not forsaking the permanent vision. Khamenei’s conduct is based on the 661 CE Treaty between Imam Hassan and Caliph Muʻawiyah, intending only to gain time, building power and gradually undermining rival dynasties— but never genuinely reconciling (Religion and Life, Grade 12, p. 104).”
Thus, school textbooks constitute a very accurate detector of the nature, mission and legitimacy/illegitimacy of regimes, and their expected use of nuclear capabilities.
While nuclear threshold democratic regimes bolster deterrence and stability, nuclear threshold rogue regimes – especially those guided by apocalyptic, violently intolerant, supremacist, megalomaniacal, non-compliant, deceitful, hate-education vision – intensify chaos, fueling nuclear war.
Reaching a constructive agreement with the Ayatollahs should be preconditioned upon a dramatic transformation of their school textbooks, strategy and tactics. On the other hand, reaching an agreement with the Ayatollahs, while the current school textbooks, strategy and tactics are in place, would constitute a drastic degree of recklessness, starting the countdown to the first ever nuclear war.
Congressional pro-activity – reasserting the co-equal status of the legislature – can make the difference, denying Iran nuclear capabilities.