Resolved: North Korea poses a more serious threat to U.S national security than Iran

This is a public forum debate. The opponent is required to follow public forum rules. First round is 1st constructive speech, 2nd round is crossfire, 3rd is 2nd constructive (rebuttal), 4th is crossfire, and 5th is final focus/summary speech. Contention 1: Iran funds, encourages and supports the proliferation of terrorism. Sub-point A: Iran openly supports and funds Hezbollah, a major terrorist organization. Former Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice said in 2006 that "Iran has been... [a] central banker for terrorism in important regions like Lebanon through Hezbollah." The U.S. Department of Defense estimates Iran's monetary support for the extremist group at $100 to $200 million annually. Impact: Hezbollah prevents the establishment of peace and stability in the Middle East. Hezbollah was capable of driving back the Israeli army from South Lebanon in 2000. Now, Israel warns of the Hezbollah threat not to its own borders, but to the stability of the entire region - and thus any hope of creating peace. Iran, through Hezbollah, is committed to preventing Middle East peace, a goal of the US. Sub-point B: Iran pays the Taliban for its anti-US operations in Afghanistan, and supplies the group with weapons. MSNBC reported on a Sunday Times investigation which found that Iran pays the Taliban $1,000 for the death of each US soldier and $6,000 for the destruction of a US military vehicle. The Taliban's treasurer described it as a "marriage of convenience." Not to mention that Tehran supplies the Taliban with weapons. More than 10 tons were intercepted along the desert border between Iran and Afghanistan in 2009, implicating a huge amount that was not intercepted. Iran supplies the Taliban with monetary incentive and the tools to carry out the campaign against US interests and thus national security in Afghanistan. Sub-point C: Iran is the world's most active state sponsor of terrorism. According to the US State Department Iran is "the most active state sponsor of terror in the world." In addition to Hezbollah and the Taliban, Iran also funds Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other liberation movements in the region. Unlike other countries, Iran is actively involved in all aspects of the functioning of these groups. It provides more than weapons to these groups. In fact, as already described, both the Taliban and Hezbollah note the importance of Iran's monetary support. Iran is also considered a safe haven for terrorist groups. While it offers these groups training as well as local endorsement and recruits, it also allows a base from where terrorist organizations can plan attacks. Since the State Department acknowledges Iran as the most active state sponsor of terrorism, Iran is a clear threat to national security. Contention 2: Iran promotes and benefits from global instability Sub-Point A: Political and Social Instability in the Middle East Recently, opposition movements have spread throughout the Middle East - threatening the political and social stability of these regions. Iran was the first country in the middle east to have these protests and other opposition leaders have cited Iran's "Green Movement" as a source of inspiration. Iran has backed other movements - most notably in Bahrain, which is a key US ally. According to the Wall Street Journal: "Bahrain gave its sternest warning yet to Iran to keep out of its affairs, saying an escalation in the two countries' dispute over Bahrain's recent crackdown on political unrest could lead to war." Clearly, a war in the Middle East is not what the US wants, due to the economic, political, and social repercussions involved. Sub-Point B: Global Economic Instability By endorsing these movements, Iran not only spreads political instability in the Middle East - but economic instability worldwide. According to Eliezer Weinstein of Yale University, "When protests occur people become uneasy of their investments in the region. In specific regards to the Middle East - oil prices rise." According to USA Today, "The Iran protests are among the latest uprisings that have churned through North Africa and the Middle East, a crucial region that's responsible for most of the world's crude exports. Analysts say it's impossible to say how long it will take for uprisings to play out, but energy markets will be on edge." Specifically, oil has gone up 35% in the last three months as a result of the protests. It has been estimated that this will added $520 billion dollars to the US trade deficit. In addition, for every dollar increase in oil, it is estimated that the stock market losses hundreds of points. Some economists have even predicted a return to recession, as more of the consumer's money are going to paying for oil and gasoline that is going offshore instead of spending on other goods and services.