Oil drives the world’s economies, their ability to produce and trade. More world stability is achievable when commerce takes place freely, without the threat of blackmail and the imperialistic hegemony of tyrannies such as Iran.

So, yes, a factor in addressing Iran is indeed oil. Should Iran pursue its nuclear-weapons agenda to tyrannize the other countries of the ME into submission to its power and to subsidize its arsenal with petro-cash, then producing/protecting oil and its safe delivery is an important consideration.

Whoever controls such a vital resource for the world’s energy needs is in the catbird seat of power. So far in American history, we have not used our military muscle to impose a colonialist empire anywhere.

I must have missed it. Where did you say that?

I don’t know. Why?

What I meant to say was that we’re gonna see a round two of the ever changing rationale for the war.

Nor is there any chance that the Israelis could handle Iran on their own (their recent air-force exercise was psychological warfare). As skilled as their pilots and planners may be, the Israelis lack the capacity to sustain a strategic offensive against Iran – or to deal with the inevitable mess they’d leave behind in the Persian Gulf. Israel’s aircraft could do serious damage to Iran’s nuke program, but the US military would face the potentially catastrophic aftermath.

Without compromising any secrets – the Iranians already know what we’d need to do – here are the basic requirements for smacking down Iran’s nuke program:

* Take out Iran’s air-defense and intelligence network to protect our attacking aircraft.

* Take down its national communications network to degrade its military reaction.

* Strike dozens of dispersed nuclear-related targets – some of them in hardened underground facilities, with others purposely placed in populated areas.

* Hit every anti-ship-missile installation along Iran’s Persian Gulf coast and the Straits of Hormuz. The reflexive Iranian response to an attack would be to launch sea-skimmer missiles against oil tankers and Western warships. The Iranians know that oil’s now the world’s Achilles heel.

* Destroy Iran’s naval capacity, including small craft, in the first 24 hours to prevent attacks on shipping (expect suicide attacks, too).

* Immediately take out all of Iran’s long-range and intermediate-range missiles – not just those that could strike Israel, but those that could hit Saudi, gulf-state or Iraqi oil refineries, pipelines, port facilities and oil fields . . . or our installations in the region.

* Hit the military’s key command centers in Tehran, as well as regional headquarters, with special attention to the Revolutionary Guards’ infrastructure.

* Expect three to six weeks of intense air and naval fighting, followed by months of skirmishing and asymmetrical warfare. And Iraq will heat back up, too.

Screw up the effort, and today’s oil prices will double or triple, with severe downstream shortages showing up in a matter of weeks – every oil tanker’s insurance will be canceled immediately, even if the Straits of Hormuz remain open (unlikely).

And we’ll be in the global doghouse.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07172008/postopinion/opedcolumnists/what_bomb_iran_really_takes_120263.htm

The Iranians have played us for 30 years. Geopolitical chess is their middle name. They will disappear only when the price of their existence is greater than their disappearance. So far that price has not been reached apparently.

Oh, so it’s not about nukes anymore. I thought so.
freevillage on July 20, 2008 at 2:20 PM

I must have missed it. Where did you say that?

The Iranians are attempting to aquire nuclear weapons and even if they wait a few years before they actually fire the nukes into Tel Aviv and Haifa, what do you think they’ll be doing in the meantime? Stabalizing the price of oil around $150 dollars a barrel to fund their terrorist proxies around the world as they have for the last twenty years? Maybe? Restarting the assassination and car bomb crews in Europe like in the Eighties? Think the Euro will hold out against a real intifada in the Paris slums? Or Berlin? Or London? Cause they’re all so good at standing up to Putin that I’m sure Iran won’t be a problem.

Oh, so it’s not about nukes anymore. I thought so.

The Apologist TKS for the comment. By the way how many computers do you have?

Monas on July 20, 2008 at 11:43 AM

I guess that was directed at me so; My point is I see no relation to the movie, the Wiki quote you posted and the thread. Just curious if you could tie it together.

If there is a genuine belief that the Iranians may pose a serious threat to anyone in the region, their military installations should be bombed. But we all know Iran will not pose any such threat in the immediate future.

They just took over Lebanon through their proxy Hizb’allah. They have prevented Fatah from pushing Hamas into negotiations through their funding and training of Hamas, making the two state solution absolutely impossible. They tried to take over southern Iraq through Ja’ish al Mahdi, they’re running guns to the Taliban on the Afghan-Iran border and they’ve got 3600 centrifuges enriching uranium 24 hours a day right now. Immediate future? Where the HELL have you been for the last twenty years? In grade school?

The Iranians are attempting to aquire nuclear weapons and even if they wait a few years before they actually fire the nukes into Tel Aviv and Haifa, what do you think they’ll be doing in the meantime? Stabalizing the price of oil around $150 dollars a barrel to fund their terrorist proxies around the world as they have for the last twenty years? Maybe? Restarting the assassination and car bomb crews in Europe like in the Eighties? Think the Euro will hold out against a real intifada in the Paris slums? Or Berlin? Or London? Cause they’re all so good at standing up to Putin that I’m sure Iran won’t be a problem. Not on EU/US relations, no, never.

I appreciate your naivte freevillage. I thought that brand of hippy were all dead and gone forever from bad batches of LSD. It’s good to see a few survived long enough to pass on their genes. Still, you’d think their deaths would have taught you something about trusting strangers and people who’ve spent 30 years welching on every deal they ever agreed to and who use terrorists to execute their foriegn policy instead of a diplomatic corps. I guess not.

P.S. Don’t take the harsh response personally. I like that you hang out here.

Nobody but HA trolls ever thought that talking to the Iranians would do any good. When Iran is a smoldering ruin, THEN I’ll have hope for change.

Until then the cultists who run the place are going to try and bring back the ancient Imam who’s hiding in a well so that he can end the world in style. These people are NOT crazy, they really truly believe this stuff.

Monas on July 20, 2008 at 10:52 AM

What, exactly, is your point and what does that silly movie have to do with it?

The film (China syndrome) illustrated the viewpoint that human depravity is of greater safety concern than flaws of technology.

THE CHINA SYNDROME

freevillage on July 20, 2008 at 2:23 AM
Wow. I don’t know what I did to deserve that response.

terryannonline on July 20, 2008 at 9:25 AM

It is difficult to be logical with someone who is illogical.

Most people here have no idea how one should defer to Meteorology professors on the question of global warming. Most of you are simply nuts. I seriously would be afraid to bet my money that you don’t drink urine.
freevillage on July 20, 2008 at 2:23 AM

Most weather forcasters are meteorologist. How accurate are they at make making long range weather predictions?

If we show them to be crazy people now it will make O!’s plans to have direct talks with the madman look like the crazy talk that it is.

JimK on July 20, 2008 at 10:02 AM

Anyone who doesn’t know the Iranians by now will never know them. I understand your point, but the left has always been particularly impervious to reason and reality. Rubbing their noses in the truth never causes a good reaction. It’s best to just ignore them and carry on.

If we show them to be crazy people now it will make O!’s plans to have direct talks with the madman look like the crazy talk that it is.

JimK on July 20, 2008 at 10:02 AM

I think it does just the opposite. it validates what obama was saying because he’ll say “I’m just doing what the bush administration is doing”

freevillage on July 20, 2008 at 2:23 AM

Wow. I don’t know what I did to deserve that response.

Most people here have no idea how one should defer to Meteorology professors on the question of global warming. Most of you are simply nuts. I seriously would be afraid to bet my money that you don’t drink urine.

freevillage on July 20, 2008 at 2:23 AM
When you or your scientist explain the much warmer periods in previous centuries, I will take a look at man made global warming, even though it is getting cooler now.

There comes a point where you quit f’n around… We’re there… (actually been there)