Last night I visited a smart historical friend who said that the Iran threat is bogus, it grows out of Israel’s need for an enemy, and the US has to try to denuclearize the region. Tony Karon says some of the same in the National:
But if the US is committed to escalating pressure to force Iran to back down, what next? A naval blockade? The Iranians would treat it as an act of war, and respond in some nasty, asymmetrical way. And then what? A military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities? That would certainly start a war, with unpredictable and potentially catastrophic consequences throughout the Middle East, and wouldn’t even necessarily end Iran’s pursuit of nuclear capacity.
Those who advocate that Mr Obama tie his diplomatic outreach to tight deadlines that trigger new sanctions are committing the US to a path of ever-escalating pressure that could easily drag him into a war he would prefer to avoid. The only real argument being advanced for imposing new sanctions on Iran is the idea that if the US fails to show progress in its diplomatic effort to limit Iran’s nuclear ambitions by the end of this year, Israel will take matters into its own hands and launch a military strike.
But Washington will restrain Israel from taking actions that will prejudice US security, and allowing the Israeli leadership’s more alarmist reading of the situation to set the clock for Washington’s dealings with Iran could leave Mr Obama in a very uncomfortable place.
Perhaps Obama is just going through some simple political theatre, and knows he
will bring the USA into a war with Iran already? The American Jewish money is important to his entitled 8 years. He’s willing to give up white America for his power.
If you can manage to pull your head a bit further out of the sand, you’ll see there are far more WASP elites with vested interest in overthrowing the Iranian regime than Jews. Lockheed Martin, Exxon, and, Halliburton are a few notable examples. Zionist Jews are the visible face of our conquest of the Middle East, but they are only a smaller part of a much larger beast.
Your anonymous friend is authority, Phil?
I get that you are afraid of war. Everyone should be.
The Iranian threat is not only a threat though. It is a recent history of shelling from Gaza (Iranian supplied materiel). It is an enormous ILLEGAL arms buildup in southern Lebanon, controlled by a militia, not the Lebanese military.
And, the escalation of a nuclear program (to what eventual extent is unknown, but the pathway is the same path as nuclear weapons) is real. The escalation of its missile delivery program is real.
Get your head out of the sand. You are arguments are too easily dismissed. Realist views do not reconcile with wishful thinking ones.
Obama has treaded very lightly with Iran, and has not yet received but really incidental response.
The usual and predictable propaganda from you Richard,
First, Iran is no threat. Iran has not attacked nor invaded anyone in more than 200 years, unlike Israel. Iran has no nukes, unlike Israel. Iran does not make weekly threatst to attack Iran, unlike Israel.
The shelling from Gaza is carried out by Palestinians resisting occupation, a resistance which began before the Iranian Revolution.
Iran has no arms build up in Southern Lebanon. The arms belong to Hezbollah, also a resitance organisation, which happen to source some of it’s arms from Iran. Hezbollah’s most effective weapon during the 2006 war was the Russian anti-tank Kornet. Hezbollah also use M16 semi-automatics, but that does not mean they are armed by the US.
Icidentally, Hezbollah is part of the Lebanese government and it’s weapons are no more illegal that Israel’s.
The on ethig that Hamas and Hezbollah have in common is that both began as resitance organisations ot Israeli occupation and agression and neither would exist were it not for Israel.
There is no escalation to a nuclear program. The 2007 NIE, and countless IAEA reports state there is no evidence of a nuclear weapons program. Dennis Blair, head of US intelligence, confirmd 2 months ago that the 2007 NIE conclusions stil stand.
Your fear mongering and propaganda is too easily dismissed. The realists views are the ones based on facts, all of which refute everything you have just stated.
I don’t think Obama intends to attack Iran. Then again, I don’t think Bush intended to attack Iraq at this stage in his first term. Events have a way of making people do things they never intended. The question is, are such events random, or is there a stage manager behind them?
Gee, I don’t see anything on the horizon but the USA being swept into another war in behalf Israel. The most important point is that the USA masses will not see it as such,