Sarah Palin has started quite a conversation. Riffing off of a Daniel Pipes column, though it was actually a mis-read of Patrick J. Buchanan’s article at Townhall, Palin on Iran has had its desired outcome. Now, I’ve already written about this, including Dick Cheney’s shot at Sarah, but Palin’s Iran comments have brought a lot of people forward to take her on over the last weeks. Interesting that Fareed Zakaria weighed in on Sarah Palin‘s bomb, bomb, bomb Iran advice for Pres. Obama. No doubt an exciting outcome for Sarah Palin’s foreign policy gurus, which include Randy Scheunemann.
It is important to recognize the magnitude of what people like Palin are advocating. The United States is being asked to launch a military invasion of a state that poses no imminent threat to America, without sanction from any international body and with few governments willing to publicly endorse such an action. Al-Qaeda and its ilk would present it as the third American invasion of a Muslim nation in a decade, proof positive that the United States is engaged in a war of civilizations. Moderate Arab states and Muslim governments everywhere would be on the defensive. And as Washington has surely come to realize, wars unleash forces that cannot be predicted or controlled.
Of course, Mr. Zakaria is far too smart not to know Pres. Obama will not bomb Iran. But the traditional media tribe is restless.
Today, Anne Applebaum invokes Sarah Palin in order to take a walk into the storyland reality of Israel hitting Iran. She’s joined there by Richard Cohen, though he doesn’t invoke Sarah Palin, but instead suggests Obama go down the “Madman Theory” of spooking Ahmadinejad. It’s a Nixonian era insanity not worth quoting, except that all this Washington Post print on Iran was driven by Sarah Palin.
But Zakaria, one of the only people to bluntly ask Michael Oren about Israel’s nuclear capabilities, does use Sarah Palin’s moment on Iran to weigh in on others things of importance. First, Zakaria asks a question: Can we live with a nuclear Iran? As I’ve said many times, it’s not a question of if or whether Iran becomes a nuclear nation, but when. As to Zakaria’s question, he answers it simply: Well, we’re living with a nuclear North Korea (boxed in and contained by its neighbors). And we lived with a nuclear Soviet Union and Communist China. Anne Applebaum takes it to the next step, however indirectly, that boils down to asking: can Israel live with a nuclear Iran?
Then Zakaria takes on something else. Sect. Clinton’s comments that Iran is resembling more and more a “military dictatorship.”
The most significant recent development in Iran has been the displacement of the clerical elite by the Revolutionary Guards, a military organization that is now the center of power. Clinton confirmed this when she warned of an emerging “military dictatorship” there. I’m not sure which is worse for the Iranian people: rule by nasty mullahs or by thuggish soldiers. But we know this: Military regimes are calculating. They act in ways that keep themselves in power. That instinct for self-preservation is what will make a containment strategy work.
It’s a shot across the Administration’s bow, through Sect. Clinton’s cage rattling words, with no proof whatsoever offered that Iran would be any bigger threat to the United States if the Revolutionary Guards had the power. The rest is about Israel.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Jonathan Guyer is Steve Clemons and The Washington Note’s cartoonist.
This is just a question and only a question – for years it has been suspected that Israel has nuclear weapons, which in all likelihood they do. Now, if Israel has nuclear weapons, wouldn’t that upset Iran a tiny wee bit, and they would naturally want something to stand up to Israel? Why is that no one holds Israel’s feet to the coals but go after Iran about nuclear weapons? I’m not for or against. I don’t know why anyone would want nuclear weapons. Paint me pacifist.
It isn’t “suspected” that Israel has nuyclear weapons. Israel has nuclear weapons, about 400 of them; they build them at Dimona, which they have never allowed anyone–not even the US–to inspect. They have nuclear naval vessels, submarines, as well. And, Israel has never signed onto the nuclear nonproliferation treaty, which IRAN has done, thereby giving Iran every right to build nuclear reactors [and in fact, the US gave them their first one decades ago!] for peaceful nuclear energy purposes. So, all this “bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb bomb Iran” stuff is coming straight from Israel, and it’s very bad for the US. We are making a very big mistake by aligning ourselves with Israel.
The article, “Misreading the Map,” by Leon Hadar, was written almost a year and a half ago, but it’s still instructive today. And, there are other good informative articles here for background on the issue, although I will say, the Michael Herzog article is really good as a joke on anyone stupid enough to believe his dogma and propaganda [he's in the IDF].
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/65095/leon-hadar/misreading-the-map
Mornin’ JA. The nuclear Israel subject has been off limits for years, something known but not spoken, especially from the traditional media tribe. Our special relationship is the reason, as questioning Israel or our investment in their defense is a career killing.
You’ll very rarely hear the Israel – Iran issue even broached on MSNBC. It’s not just Iran v. Israel for the Iranians either. It’s Pakistan, India, China, N. Korea, etc. No one doubts the threat of Iran weaponizing, which would start an arms race, with the Saudis jumping in immediately, another arms race the main issue.
Noogan, I’ll take Zakaria’s assessment, over which Michael Oren didn’t quibble: 250 nukes in August 2009.
http://www.taylormarsh.com/2009/08/16/zakaria-moves-orev-to-clarify-israeli-nuke-issue/
So much for honest journalism and reporting. We aren’t allowed to talk about it because of “our special relationship.” Sorry that’s bunk. Maybe if the MSM did talk about it, oh well that would require honesty.
Taylor Marsh says:
23 February 2010 at 11:20 am
“It’s Pakistan, India, China, N. Korea, etc. No one doubts the threat of Iran weaponizing, which would start an arms race, with the Saudis jumping in immediately, another arms race the main issue”
But why is it ok for Pakistan, India, China, N. Korea, etc. to have nuclear weapons and Not Iran. Sounds to me like there is an ongoing arms race and Iran just wants to join the club. I’m also thinking that Israel would love to see the conditions ripen so as to allow them to attack Iran.
Forgive me but I need to play “devil’s advocate” sometime.
I think the Palin suggestion is the height of arrogance and ignorance. As if the Iranian people mean nothing more than a political abstraction to her.I wonder if she can find them on a map or if she has the slighest idea of their geographical position over there and what it means.
Iran’s big ‘get’. Abdolmalek Rigi was arrested by Iran today. Rigi heads the Pakistani based Jundallah which is responsible for bombing attacks, bank robberies, kidnappings and lots of deaths inside Iran. Jundallah would be what the United States would normally call a terrorist group. But not in this case because Rigi and Jundallah have been working for the USA. An ABC news report in 2007 said that the organization was “secretly encouraged and advised by American (CIA) officials” to destabilize the government of Iran. Seymour Hersh in a July 2008 report said that a good portion of bush’s secret $400 million anti-terrorist slush fund went to Rigi and his Jundallah organization. 24 hours before Rigi’s arrest he was on a US military base receiving instructions. Hillary and her Zionist pals are going to be very unhappy that Rigi has been arrested and will soon be hanged by the neck until he’s dead. Such is life. Peace
Great point, Imhotep, and an important subject.
Tomorrow in the NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/24/world/middleeast/24insurgent.html?pagewanted=print
The head of a militant Sunni group accused by the Iranian government of a string of terrorist attacks has been captured, according to a report on Tuesday by the official Islamic Republic News Agency.
The rebel leader, Abdolmalek Rigi, has been sought by Iran for years, and the government has charged that his group, Jundallah, or Soldiers of God, is allied with Al Qaeda and backed by Britain and the United States.
In a news conference shown on state-run Press TV, the Iranian intelligence minister, Heidar Moslehi, said Tuesday that Mr. Rigi had been at an American base 24 hours before his capture, although he did not name the base. He said Iranian intelligence had been monitoring Mr. Rigi’s movements for the past five months.
Mr. Moslehi also charged that Mr. Rigi had connections to the Central Intelligence Agency and Mossad, the Israeli spy agency. He said the United States had arranged for an Afghan passport for Mr. Rigi. …
I believe this is the Sy Hersh piece to which Imhotep refers:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/07/080707fa_fact_hersh
Rigi seemed to be flying from Dhabi,UAE to Kazakhstan. This is payback by somebody. I’m just not sure if it’s an Obama response to the hawks in his administration or it’s the UAE sticking it to Israel for the Mossad assassination? But, it sure does make things interesting. Peace
Of course, Israel will attack Iran precisely because Israeli arrogance knows no bounds. It believes that only Israel has an army and an air force of any merit. It believes that all other peoples and their military are ineffective and inferior. It believes that because it attacked a handful of Ugandans and bombed an Egyptian airport and killed 2000 civilians in Lebanon and Gaza and demolished a building in Syria – that they are the world’s supreme fighting force. The arrogance of this part-time army of non-professionals is staggering. They have never been involved at any time in a real military operation with an armed and trained enemy. Israel wins conflicts against unarmed civilians and bombs its opponents who have no planes and no tanks with which to defend themselves. Compared to the professionalism of the US and British armies, the IDF is strictly an amateur operation. They have never been proved in battle against a properly equipped and trained army. They will attack Iran and Iran will retaliate with long range missiles against Tel Aviv. Then will come the nuclear counter attack by Israel and the entire world will immediately be in danger. Better by far to ensure that Israel’s secret and dangerous nuclear pile is dismantled for the sake of world peace. It is not Iran that is the danger. Iran has no nuclear weapons and is not likely to have any for some years if ever. To match Israel’s nuclear capability would take it at least 20 years. That’s right, twenty years!
Nice blast, colin.
It’s not Obama’s response to the hawks, Imhotep.
Imhotep..so you think Obama has been captured by hawks in his own administration,people he selected?
Lake Lady, I don’t believe that Obama wanted to surge 30,000 additional troops into Afghanistan. I ‘know’ that Biden didn’t want to do it. They lost the argument. By process of elimination it’s the hawks who carried the day. Hillary, Gates, the CIA and the generals. Do you have another candidate? Peace
Well I understand that Isreal is worried. The leader of Iran said that he wanted to wipe Isreal off the map. I am sure Isreal has nuclear weapons !! The point Sarah Palin made I disagree with, But there are people out that saying the samething. Some conservatives on cable news shows are almost saying the samething. One saying that “The United States needs to blockade Iran” and ” The United States needs to bomb Irans nuclear projects” which I disagree with because we are in two wars already and we don’t need a third one. I don’t no what Isreal is planning but I am sure they have plans !! Its going to be interesting to see what happens. I hope for peace, but the middle east is a ticking time bomb and its going to be hard to tell what happens I just hope for the best !!
Utterly shocked at the above posters who can’t understand why Israel would be threatened by a nuclear Iran that aids and abets Hezbollah and Hamas. Uttlerly shocked and disappointed, particularly by those who believe that Israel is more of a threat to the world than Iran. Is your hatred of Israel so blinding that you cannot see the absurdity in this statement? Not saying that this means there has to be a war, but please, some perspective here.