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There is bad news and there is good news. The bad news is that Iran poses a serious threat toward the United States. The good news is that there are steps we can take (short of war) to deal with the government in Tehran. Peter Schweizer offers some suggestions in the USA Today, taking a lesson from President Ronald Reagan's administration.

Schweizer points out a number of reasons for the United States to change its approach. First of all, Iran is working to get nuclear weapons and refuses to cooperate with the international community. Second, Iran has recently taken four innocent Americans hostage for "spying" and "undermining Iranian national security." Third, Iran is supporting insurgents fighting American troops in Iraq. And finally, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has voiced hopes to destroy Israel by "wipe[ing] it off the face of the map."

Up until now, the U.S. response has involved diplomatic talks. But, if President Bush follows Schweizer's advice, the United States will go on the offensive, like Ronald Reagan during the Cold War. Schweizer's advice (and that of many scholars) is to cut off Iranian access to oil. Though the nation is oil rich, it does not have the refinery capacity to produce the gasoline it demands. If the United States were to put a blockade in place, the Iranian economy would collapse. The impact would be immediate, and Iran would have very few ways to respond.

Diplomacy is better than military action, but when talking fails, the United States needs to be willing to do more than just offer stern warnings. After all, actions speak louder than words, especially words that fall on deaf ears.