IRAN IS SURROUNDED BY U.S. MILITARY BASES (*)
Five reasons (I am told) why Israel should not attack Iran:
1. The Iranians would retaliate with great fury, closing the Strait of Hormuz and unleashing the dogs of terror in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iraq.
2. The entire region would be set ablaze by irate Muslims; the Arab Spring would turn into a frigid Islamist winter.
3. The world economy would be dealt a death blow in the form of higher oil prices.
4. The Iranian regime would be strengthened, having been attacked by the Zionists its propaganda so regularly vilifies.
5. A nuclear-armed Iran is nothing to worry about. States actually become more risk-averse once they acquire nuclear weapons.
[February 6, 2012 Author: Niall Ferguson, Member of the Board, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs]
OBAMA TAKES A CALL AS ISRAELI JETS TAKE TO THE AIR
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Mr. President, we have reliable intelligence that the Israeli Air Force is in the air and within an hour of striking suspected nuclear facilities in Iran.
READ WHAT PRESIDENT OBAMA REPLY’S!
The threat of Iranian retaliation. The Iranians will very likely be facing not one, not two, but three U.S. aircraft carriers. Two are already in the Persian Gulf: CVN 72 Abraham Lincoln and CVN 70 Carl Vinson. A third, CVN 77George H.W. Bush, is said to be on its way from Norfolk, Va.
Yes, I know President Obama is a noble and saintly man of peace who uses unmanned drones only to assassinate America’s foes in unprecedented numbers after wrestling with his conscience for anything up to … 10 seconds. But picture the scene once described to me by a four-star general. It is not the proverbial 3 a.m. but 11 p.m. in the White House (7 a.m. in Israel). The phone rings.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Mr. President, we have reliable intelligence that the Israeli Air Force is in the air and within an hour of striking suspected nuclear facilities in Iran.
President: Damn. What should I do?
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Mr. President, I want to recommend that you provide the Israelis with all necessary support to limit the effectiveness of Iranian retaliation.
President: But those [expletives deleted] never ran this past me. They went behind my back, goddammit.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Yes, sir.
President: Why the hell should I lift a finger to help them?
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Because if the Iranians close the Strait of Hormuz, we will see oil above $200 a barrel.
President [after a pause]: Just a moment. [Whispers] How am I doing in Florida?
David Axelrod [also whispering]: Your numbers suck.
President: OK, General, line up those bunker busters.
[Source: Ferguson, Niall. "Israel’s Case for War With Iran." Newsweek, February 6, 2012.]
[Picture Source: businessinsider.com]
