Well said, bobert.

teribus, just looking at the map tells me that Iran has very good, defensive reasons to want to control the Persian Gulf (at least those waters on their border). They have the most to lose by allowing anyone else to control it. They have a long history with Arab invaders and aren't about to give up anymore control of their land and their resources. They are constantly threatened by the Arabs and more recently, Israel and the U.S. There is a very good reason they prefer to be called Persians.

Try, if at all possible, to see both sides of the story.