Iran has seized fifteen Royal Navy and Royal Marines personnel in the Gulf while they were inspecting a boat suspected of smuggling cars. That is an act of war. And what will we do about it? Nothing. They could hang these men on live TV (let’s hope they don’t) and still we would do little except bluster ineffectually.
The Iranians are feeling their oats, and with good reason. The extent to which they are supporting the Shia terrorists in Iraq, and fomenting unrest generally, should by now have had very serious consequences for them. Our pusillanimity is astounding. We could take Iran down as a functioning country in two days. All we’d need to do is hit its domestic refinement and import capacity and its economy would collapse (Iran is a major oil producer, but a net importer of refined petroleum products).
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I don’t know if that would do it or not, David.
NORK’s economy for years consisted of grass, cannibalism, and WMD sales, and Young Crazy Great Leader is still there. Iran still has oil to sell, no matter whether the common man can drive his car or heat his home or not.
Iran at a North Korean economic level would be a substantially smaller threat than it is now. Funding those thousands of al Quds maniacs in Iraq costs primo coin. Further interdiction of oil exports is very possible (a task force in the Straits of Hormuz could bottle up the tankers; taking out a few pipeline stations would cut the land route).
To repeat: an impoverished North Korea, shunned by all, still managed to come up with nukes, which permit it to threaten Seoul and Tokyo.
An impoverished Iran would not be impoverished enough to prevent it from getting nukes, with which it could threaten the world’s oil supply.
There is no cheap and easy solution to Iran. We’re going to have to actually take them out, the way we did Saddam.
And as for Iran, in general: Why are we having these problems? I thought the Surge to Purge Baghdad was going to bring us “victory.”
This was the first of two things we need to eliminate Iran and its nuclear threat– A provocation! The second thing we need is two sets of balls, one for Bush and one for Blair. Can miracles happen? Unfortunately not in this instance.