IAEA's report proves Iran's nuclear program is peaceful?

Nothing to see here, move along please ... please ignore any indications of further, undisclosed, nuclear enrichment facilities ... please ignore the size of the Qom facility, understanding it is for peaceful research purposes ...

Iran tested advanced nuclear warhead design – secret report

"It's remarkable that, before perfecting step one, they are going straight to step four or five ... To start with more sophisticated designs speaks of level of technical ambition that is surprising."

-- James Acton, British nuclear weapons expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Watchdog fears Tehran has key component to put bombs in missiles.

NYTimes: Iran is capable of making the bomb

The New York Times weighs in on a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency. The report says the agency assesses that Iran has sufficient information to be able to design and produce a workable implosion nuclear device based on highly enriched uranium.

There may still be those who do not believe Iran is moving toward a nuclear capability, but there numbers are dwindling. Apparently, the IAEA's departing director, Mohamed ElBaradei, still is not convinced that Iran is moving toward the bomb. I think that ElBaradei is simply in the tank with Ahmadinejad.

Iran Reveals Existence of Second Uranium Enrichment Plant

"If I were Obama's adviser, I would definitely advise him to refrain making this statement [pressing their case about the new enrichment plant during upcoming talks] because it is definitely a mistake. It would definitively be a mistake. This does not mean we must inform Mr. Obama's administration of every facility that we have, it simply adds to the list of issues [over] which the United States owes the Iranian nation an apology. . . . Rest assured that this will be the case. We do everything transparently."

-- Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in an interview with Time magazine, 9/25/2009

Seems that Mahmoud and Barry both are having problems understanding the meaning of "transparency" when applied to things associated with government.

The bigger issue is Iran's nuclear ambition, which seems to be growing in capability and confidence daily, and is not being met with any real deterrent. The Obama administration's recent declaration of a nuclear free world is incredibly naive and dangerous. Proposing a unilateral disarmament in an effort to lead the world by example is breath-taking in its stupidity. The only immediate rival is the Administration's concession to Russia, and slap in the face to Poland and the Czech Republic, by announcing it would not be honoring America's commitment to keeping our allies safe through a missile defense shield.

Amazingly, the French and British are now leading the World in condemning Iran and sounding a general alarm. Their rhetoric is hollow, however, as their proposed deterrent consists entirely of sanctions.

Time seems to be moving very slow. The days drag into weeks, the weeks into months ...

Sarkozy: Iran still working on a nuclear weapons program

"It is a certainty to all of our secret services. Iran is working today on a nuclear [weapons] program. We cannot let Iran acquire nuclear weapons because it would also be a threat to Israel,"

-- French President Nicolas Sarkozy, September 15, 2009

Re-stating the obvious ...

Tell tale ...

Move along, nothing to see here ....

Israel says UN covering up Iran's drive toward the bomb ...

Israel thinks the IAEA is purposefully underexposing Iran's bomb making activity. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who is to vacate his post in December, has said the UN watchdog does not have any evidence suggesting Iran is developing a nuclear weapons programme. Meanwhile, everyone from the DA of Manhattan to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has concluded that Iran not only can build a bomb, but that they are most probably building a bomb.

Israel's enemies are gathering ...

Hezbollah’s rearming is in the name of “resistance” against Israel. But the real reason probably has more to do with its ally Iran. If Israel carries out its threat to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, then the main retaliation is likely to come from its Hezbollah allies in Lebanon. Hezbollah is Iran’s insurance policy.

Ezekiel 38:15-16 (New International Version)

¹⁵ You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. ¹⁶ You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. In days to come, O Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me when I show myself holy through you before their eyes.

(Can't say you've not been warned! Good luck dudes!)

Iran awaiting the word from Ayatollah ...

If Iran’s leader does decide to build a bomb, he will have two choices. One would be to take the high-risk approach of kicking out the international inspectors and making a sprint to complete Iran’s first bomb, as the country weathered international sanctions or possible air strikes in the ensuing crisis. The other would be to covertly develop the materials needed for an arsenal in secret desert facilities.

Uh, perhaps option two has been in the process of execution for some while now??

Idiots ...

John Bolton weights in on Israel's "Responsibility"

"Absent Israeli action, prepare for a nuclear Iran. "

-- John Bolton, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute

Germany thinks Iran could have a bomb in 6 months

"If they wanted to, they could detonate an atomic bomb in half a year's time."

-- Anonymous expert at Germany's foreign intelligence agency BND

This dude in England begs to differ:

"(Six months) is absolutely a worst-case analysis,"

-- Mark Fitzpatrick, senior non-proliferation fellow at London's International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Obama and Hillary discover what Bush already knew: Negotiating with Iran is hard

The U.S. administration is discovering now that that the attitude of Iranian leaders is harder to sway than they thought on the campaign trail.

-- Ilan Berman, Iranian expert, American Foreign Policy Council, Washington D. C., July 2009

If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from us.

-- Barak Obama, interview on al-Arabiya television network, January 2009

Idiot.

Ahmadinejad mad! No one goes home without punch in nose!!

As soon as the new government is established, with power and authority, ten times more than before, it will enter the global scene and will bring down the global arrogance. They should wait as a new wave of revolutionary thinking ... from the Iranian nation is on the way and we will not allow the arrogant (powers) to even have one night of good sleep. In this recent election the enemy tried to bring the battlefront to the interior of this country, but I have told the enemies ... that this nation ... will strike you in the face so hard you will lose your way home.

-- Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, broadcast from IRIB, July 14, 2009

Israeli ships sailing into the Red Sea ...

Two of Israel's Saar class missile boats have crossed through the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea. This follows the news earlier this month that one of the Israeli navy's Dolphin class submarines had also sailed to the Red Sea through the Suez Canal.

I am wondering what Russia is thinking right now? I wonder what they are planning.

Admiral Mike Mullen: Clock is ticking ...

"... it is critical for diplomatic efforts to reach a solution before Iran develops a nuclear weapon or faces an Israeli or U.S. strike to turn back its nuclear program. That window is a very narrow window. There's a great deal that certainly depends on the dialogue and the engagement. I'm hopeful that that dialogue is productive. I worry about it a great deal if it's not. . . . [some forecasters believe Iran could be as little as a year away from developing a nuclear bomb], The clock has continued to tick. . . . [Washington must keep all options on the table as it pursues dialogue with Iran], including certainly military options. It (a military strike) is a really important place to not go, if we can not go there in any way, shape or form," the admiral said.

-- Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff

Biden gives Israel the green light ...

"Israel can determine for itself -- it's a sovereign nation -- what's in their interest and what they decide to do relative to Iran and anyone else; whether we agree or not. They're entitled to do that. Any sovereign nation is entitled to do that. But there is no pressure from any nation that's going to alter our behavior as to how to proceed, We cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do. Israel has a right to determine what's in its interests, and we have a right and we will determine what's in our interests."

-- Vice President Joe Biden, ABC's "This Week", Sunday July 5th.

Oh, by the way, the Saudi's are willing to let Israel fly over their airspace on the way to bomb Iran too (according to a high level Mossad official).

I am assuming we now wait for an Iranian response.

An embarrassing slip of the lip? Ahem ...

"The whole Iranian nation are united... on (the) inalienable right of (having a) nuclear weapon,"

-- Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's envoy to the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency

Dude. What are you trying to say? That Iran *might* be pursuing nuclear weapons?

Crickets ...

Whew, that was close!

Almost appeared that Mahmoud would be replaced and Iran would take its rightful place around the world's table of civilized nations. So much for that.

Apparently, the apocalyptic, genocidal Persian death cult is alive and well.

By the Supreme Leader giving his warm embrace to Ahmadinejad (thereby ratifying the election results) there can be no doubt that not only are their end-time beliefs in concert, but on track for commencement. Bring on the Mahdi, baby!

First up in their sights: Israel.

Obama: Iran has the "rights" to nukes ...

"[there is a danger] when the United States, or any country, thinks that we can simply impose these values on another country with a different history and a different culture."

- Barack Hussein Obama, BBC Interview, June 2 2009

What values are the United States attempting to impose that are so detestable? The golden rule?

North Korea lights a nuke, Iran dispatches warships and Venezuela gets caught supplying uranium to Iran

Wow, what a busy Memorial Day.


North Korea lights one up underground, and fires a flurry of missiles.

Iran moves warships into the Gulf of Aden.

Israel catches Venezuela sending Uranium to Iran.

Things seem to be moving rather quickly right now.

Yet another Iranian missile test firing ...

This missile looks like it has the appropriate range (Israel). It is an "advanced" solid rocket fueled missile. Wonder where the Persians got that technology from?

"It's late in the game, and we don't have a lot of time."

Manhattan District Attorney and legendary Democrat Robert Morgenthau has confirmed beyond doubt Iranian intentions with respect to development of THE BOMB (the story was first covered here).

" . . . we have consulted with top experts in the field from MIT and from private industry and from the CIA. . . . Frankly, some of the people we've consulted are shocked by the sophistication of the equipment they're buying."

-- Robert Morgenthau, District Attorney, Manhattan

A copy of the indictment can be found here.

Apparently, the Foreign Relations Committee, chaired by John Kerry, concurs. Again, they have a timetable that says Iran is 6 months away from having enough material for a bomb. Actually, assuming 19.9 kg of U-235 on hand as of November 17, 2008, a requirement of 21.6 kg for a first bomb, and a production rate of 1.6 kg of U-235 each month, Iran would have had enough in December 2008. The weaponization of that U-235 should be just about complete.

"It's late in the game, and we don't have a lot of time."

-- Robert Morgenthau, District Attorney, Manhattan

Obama, folding ...

Well, in Obama's defense he did say while campaigning that he would not push preconditions for talks with Iran. Mission accomplished.

Meanwhile, North Korea has expelled all the U.N.'s nuclear inspectors and has restarted its nuclear reactors ...

crickets

Peres, saber rattling ...

“[Iranian president Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad recruits forces against us, but there are also forces against him ... What happened in Egypt created a fierce opposition and we must unify all his opponents -- the Sunnis and the Europeans, as well as those afraid of nuclear weapons and terror. [If Obama's rhetoric doesn't soften the Iranian president’s approach] we’ll strike him.”

-- Israeli President Shimon Peres, April 11, 2009

Meanwhile ... Caroline Glick thinks that America has bailed on her former allies and friends and now it is up to those jilted former friends to come together in unity to take the fight forward ...

Jewish World Review: Surviving in a post-American world

... crickets ....

Showtime must be approaching ...

Ahmadinejad says he is ready to talk with Obama, and his conditions are open to debate. He lambastes Bush for past belligerence and strong-arm tactics and fawns praise for Obama's gentle and humble approach. He further reiterated Iran's desire for its sovereign ability to develop enriched uranium for "peaceful" purposes. He also announced that Iran has 7000 centrifuges now, up from 6000 in February.

"[past negotiations failed because] they were insisting on stopping our peaceful activities, they were trying to impose that. The Iranian nation has always been for talks, dialogue has to be based on justice and respecting rights ... Justice means both sides are treated equally and bilateral rights are respected ... Today conditions have changed. We had presented a package. Given new world developments, new subjects need to be added to the package"

-- Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaking during celebrations for Iran's Nuclear Day, in which a number of nuclear advances were announced.

So, maybe the Sentinel is a stupid, slack-jawed, doe-eyed, low-brow and Iran really does not want the 12th Imam to re-appear and they really don't want to incinerate the Zionist-pig nation and her supporters; however, does anyone remember that period of time when Neville Chamberlain was coming back to Britain announcing peace in our time? He had just signed this fancy document (after some killer negotiating - with words) with Hitler that said Hitler promised not to start a war. There was this brief period when everybody breathed this huge sigh of relief.

I believe this is our brief period.

Confirmation: China's been selling banned material to Iran

NY Times reports on indictments handed down today. Appears the Chinese were selling things to Iran that would facilitate construction of a bomb.

Prosecutors in New York have charged a Chinese businessman and his company with a conspiracy relating to the sale of sensitive materials to Iran, covert transactions that prosecutors say violated United Nations bans aimed at restraining Tehran’s rocket and nuclear ambitions.

Israel, going down the checklist ...

Apparently, Israel is making sure all the last minute details are being attended to at the very moment its arch rival is doing the same.

A few minor quibbles from the referenced article:

The Arrow project is being developed by Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. and Chicago-based Boeing Co. at a cost of more than $1 billion. It was spurred largely by the failure of the U.S. military's Patriot missiles to intercept Iraqi Scud rockets that struck Israel in the 1991 Gulf War.

The "Patriot" was designed as an anti-aircraft missile system. That it took down a missile is a testament to the genius of its developers. The Patriot is truly a remarkable weapon.

Last month, the U.S. military's ground-based mobile missile defense system successfully shot down a medium-range ballistic missile during a test in Hawaii.

It was the first time the military fired two interceptors at one target using the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, a program designed to shoot down ballistic missiles in their last stage of flight.

The drill followed up on a test that was planned for last September but had to be aborted when the target malfunctioned shortly after launch.

Any complaints about the missile defense system that President Bush had negotiated for placement on U.S. allies Poland and the Czech Republics borders are now officially rebuffed. The truth is THAAD is also quite remarkable and very effective. It is the result of Reagan-Bush-Clinton and should close the mouths of the ignorant baying in the wilderness (it really has not). Is Obama and crew really trying to dismantle these programs?

At any rate, looks like we are set for a magnificently spectacular evening light show in the Hebrew wilderness, eh? Game on!

Meanwhile, Obama is weakening our nuclear aresenal ...

While we wait for World War III to unfold at the hands of Iran, it appears our Commander-in-Chief is doing his very best to even the playing field.

What Mr. Obama wants to kill specifically is the Reliable Replacement Warhead, which the Bush Administration supported over Congressional opposition, and which Mr. Obama now opposes despite the support of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the military. Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told us this week that "we do need a new warhead." When we asked about Mr. Obama's views on the warhead, the Admiral said, "You would have to ask him."

Can't say we've not been warned

I have penned a little Haiku concerning our nuclear implosion bomb problem:

Israel, warning
Iran and Russia Smile
Obama, yawning

Or,

Obama talking
Iran secretly plots
Israel glowing

At any rate, Israel feels compelled to warn Washington that it plans on taking out Iranian nukes. While no one should be suddenly surprised when this happens certainly unified world-wide condemnation will follow. Or at least unified world-wide propaganda will lead the charge to condemn the Zionist state. I'm not really sure how normal people would feel about this.

I am not sure why Israel is bothering to warn Washington. They certainly know by now that the Obama administration cannot be counted on for support, don't they?

Wolves in the Throneroom

In review of the recent several weeks activities, let us examine President Obama's emerging Middle East diplomacy objectives.

Initially, let us see what the Obama administration understands about Syria and Iran:

"[The IAEA report] contributes to the growing evidence of clandestine nuclear activities in Syria. We must understand why such [uranium] material - material not previously declared to the IAEA - existed in Syria and this can only happen if Syria provides the cooperation requested."

- George Schulte, the US ambassador to the IAEA, reacting to the IAEA's recent release of findings from the September 2007 Israeli attack which destroyed Syria's North Korean built, Iranian financed al Kibar nuclear reactor. The report revealed that after analyzing soil samples from the bombed installation, its inspectors discovered traces of uranium. The nuclear watchdog agency also noted that the Syrians have blocked UN nuclear inspectors from the site and from three other suspected nuclear sites.

And ...

"Iran has enough uranium for a bomb."

- US Admiral Michael Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, commenting on the IAEA's report on Iran

What is Obama's diplomatic posture with respect to Syria and Iran? According to John Kerry, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the Obama administration will be adopting doctrine laid out in the Baker-Hamilton Iraq Study Group report published in December 2006. This report urges the US to coordinate the withdrawal of its forces from Iraq with Iran and Syria - the principal sponsors of both the Shiite and Sunni insurgencies in the country. It recommended that the US purchase Syria's good will by pressuring Israel to surrender the Golan Heights to Damascus and Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem to Hamas. It recommended that the US win Iran's trust by accepting it as a nuclear power and pledging not to overthrow the regime.

"[The starting point for US-Iran discussions is for the US to] state our respect for the Iranian people, renounce regime change as an instrument of US policy, seek opportunities for a range of dialogue across a range of issues, and acknowledge Iran's security concerns and its right to civilian nuclear power."

- former Congressman Lee Hamilton, co-author of the Baker-Hamilton Iraq Study Group report, in a February interview with Washington Post columnist David Ignatius

So, the Obama administration is now fully aware of the extent of the Syrian and Iranian nuclear programs. They are not alarmed. They are pursuing a policy of appeasement. The motivation for this? Palestinian statehood?

No, I think something is at play on a much more sinister level. I am intrigued that the Hamilton study urges surrender of Jerusalem to Hamas. What was that saying about Jerusalem? What was so special about Jerusalem in ancient times? Hmm ..

Matthew 24:10-20 (New International Version)

At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

"So when you see standing in the holy place 'the abomination that causes desolation,' spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.

The abomination that causes desolation! Oh, that Jesus was a riot wasn't he?

Clinton saber rattling

Ahem ... Clinton saying the U.S. won't back down from European missile defense? Says we not only need to protect Europe from Iran but from other unnamed threats too.

"Missiles not only with a nuclear warhead but a conventional warhead or some other chemical, biological weapon could very well be in the hands of a regime like Iran's, which we know will use whatever advantage they have to intimidate as far as they think their voice can reach, and who are actively pursuing a missile development program ... We have real potential threats, and obviously Iran is the name we put to them, but it is a kind of stand-in for the range of threats we foresee ..."

- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, March 4, 2009

I am not buying it. There are numerous indications that President Obama wants to warm up to the Arabs in general, and the terrorist-sponsoring ones in particular. This is demonstrated, for example, in his willingness to talk to Hamas and Syria, and even Iran (though strictly speaking, the Iranians are not ethnically Arabs). All of this is part and parcel of his apparent belief that the principal reason that the Arab and Islamic worlds are hostile toward the US is because the US supports Israel.

Ahhh, Barry! Barry! Barry!

And therein lies the danger. Clearly, the Obama government wants to improve relations with the Arab world. If the President sees Israel as the main roadblock to that goal, it is believed that he will either try to manipulate Israel to his own ends, or, if Israel proves intransigent, eventually abandon her. Better start that review of Revelations ...

From the Jerusalem Post:: Iran-Israel Showdown Near

Four recent developments have pushed Israel closer to a confrontation with Iran over its nuclear weapons program — and that could have dire consequences for an already beleaguered U.S. economy, according to best-selling author Edwin Black.

Black, an investigative journalist whose books include, “The Plan: How to Save America When the Oil Stops,” cited the four developments in an Op-Ed piece for the Jerusalem Post:

• Iran successfully launched a satellite into outer space on Feb. 2 and plans three more satellites this year, creating “an easily weaponized space net that worries American military planners.”
  
• The International Atomic Energy Agency admitted in mid-February that it had underestimated Iran’s nuclear stockpile by about one-third, and now confirms that Iran has enough nuclear material to build at least one bomb.
  
• Iran has stepped up its uranium enrichment program with thousands of highly advanced centrifuges, and is now near its goal of 6,000 centrifuges. “American policy-makers are now convinced that Iran, despite all protests and charades, is in a mad dash to create a deliverable nuclear weapon,” Black disclosed.
  
• Benjamin Netanyahu has just become the prime minister-designate of Israel, and he is determined to take action against Iran before it can deliver a nuclear weapon to the nation that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said should be “wiped off the map.”

Also, Russia is in the process of delivering an advanced air defense system that can shoot down Israeli aircraft and drones. But the system will not be fully operational for several months, “creating a narrow window for Israel to act,” Black observes.

The author points out that Iran has repeatedly vowed that if attacked by Israel, it will close the Strait of Hormuz to shipping and attack the Saudi Arabian oil facilities at Ras Tanura and Abqaiq.

“Any one of these military options, let alone all three, would immediately shut off 40 percent of all seaborne oil . . . and some 20 percent of America’s daily consumption,” Black writes.

Such an interruption in oil supplies, he warns, would likely push gasoline prices in the U.S. to $20 per gallon.

Recapping previous assessment of Iranian enriched uranium

In news interviews which took place yesterday, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told both CNN and Fox news that he believed Iran had enough fissile material for a bomb. Of course Mullen's spokesman, Capt. John Kirby, said Mullen was referring only to the International Atomic Energy Agency's finding that Iran has processed 2,222 pounds (1,010 kilograms) of low-enriched uranium.

This Washington D.C. based think-tank seems to have a much more optimistic view. They thought that Iran had enough enriched uranium back in December of 2008 for a Hiroshima sized nuclear weapon. They estimated that Iran would need another 2 to 3 months to actually transform that material into a bomb ... Lets see, since then Iran has test fired an ICBM, launching a satellite into orbit ... tick, tick, tick ...

Direct talks with Iran may facilitate, not reduce, threats to U.S. interests

"[T]he State Department recently named Dennis Ross, a seasoned Middle East negotiator, as a "special adviser" to the Gulf region -- a bureaucratic but important prerequisite for direct talks with Iran. Unfortunately, a new envoy and a new diplomatic tone cannot disguise the ongoing substantive collapse of U.S. policy and resolve in the teeth of the Islamic Republic's growing challenge."

So, there are four problems with Iran:

1. Diplomacy is not working
2. Pretending that Hamas, Hezbollah and Syriah are not really Iranian proxies is not working
3. Iraq: A free and stable Iraq threatens Iran, and Obama's policy will insure that Iraq will not be stable, and subsequently will not remain free; therefore, the Iraqi angle is not working
4. Afghanistan: See #3 above. Unstable neighbors on its borders only helps Iran. It behooves Iran to not help stabilize Afghanistan, so expect more Iraqi type insurgency there in the coming months.

Have we elected the village idiot to guide our middle east policies? Only time will tell. One thing is clear: nuclear fallout will leave a fingerprint that will be impossible to gloss over.

"The West's collective failure to stop Iran's nuclear ambitions has persuaded Iran that it faces minimal risks in greater adventurism on other fronts as well. Mr. Obama's discovery of "carrots and sticks," after a half decade of European failure to make that mantra a successful policy, will lead Tehran's mullahs to one inescapable conclusion: They have won the nuclear race, absent imminent regime change or military action."

Iran accuses Obama of being nothing more than Bush II

"It is unfortunate that, yet again, we are hearing the same tired, unwarranted and groundless allegations that used to be unjustifiably and futilely repeated by the previous administration," -- Mohammad Khazaee, Iranian envoy to the U.N. Security Council

Mohammad is responding to criticism from U.S. envoy Susan Rice.

"Instead of raising allegations against others, the United States had better take concrete and meaningful steps in correcting its past wrong policies and practices vis-a-vis other nations, including the Islamic Republic of Iran."

Hmm ... Take steps to correct past wrong policies and practices. What do you suppose he is referring to? Further, how will President Obama direct his people to react to such blustering?

I do not think these statements will intimidate Obama, I have a new perspective on the Command-In-Chiefs driving motivation. I think these statements are meant to provoke (and they eventually will).

Lots of news coming out of Iran here lately ...

Iran cranks up a reactor, and discloses it now has 6000 centrifuges whirring away

"[This] should be understood as very bad news for the whole of the international community."

-Yigal Palmor, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman

So, could we be looking at President Obama's very own "Cuban missile crisis" ? Some believe that the clock is now ticking ...

Militarily, Iran continues to strengthen the three pillars of its strategic deterrence:

• surface-to-surface missiles long-range rockets and aircraft for retaliation;
• naval forces to disrupt maritime traffic through key waterways;
• unconventional forces and surrogates to conduct worldwide lethal operations.

Although many of their statements are exaggerations, Iranian officials throughout the past year have repeatedly claimed both greater ballistic missile capabilities that could threaten US and allied interests and the ability to close the Strait of Hormuz using unconventional small boat operations, anti-ship cruise missiles, and other naval systems. Some officials, such as Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari-Najafabadi, have hinted that Iran would have a hand in attacks on “America’s interests even in far away places,” suggesting Iran has contingency plans for unconventional warfare and terrorism against the United States and its allies.

Iran puts satellite into orbit

Ahmadinejad said Tuesday that the satellite, which he said had telecommunications capabilities, had reached its orbit and had made contact with ground stations, though not all of its functions were active yet. The launch was intended to be a message of peace and friendship to the world, Ahmadinejad told state television. "We need science for friendship, brotherhood and justice," he said

What do you suppose Ahmadinejad means by "justice"?

Also, if a country can launch a satellite into orbit I wonder how much more difficult it is to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile?

Obama's Iranian Posture

Can America live with an Iranian nuclear weapon? This question was recently posed to President Obama during his first interview as President. Obama responded only generally, expressing disapproval of an Iranian bomb but not the flat condemnation that is standard from American officials. The interview was conducted by the Dubai-based Al-Arabiya Network. "Will the United States ever live with a nuclear Iran? And if not, how far are you going in the direction of preventing it?" asked the interviewer, Al Arabiya Washington Bureau Chief Hisham Melhem.

"You know, I said during the campaign that it is very important for us to make sure that we are using all the tools of U.S. power, including diplomacy, in our relationship with Iran. Now, the Iranian people are a great people, and Persian civilization is a great civilization. Iran has acted in ways that's not conducive to peace and prosperity in the region: their threats against Israel; their pursuit of a nuclear weapon which could potentially set off an arms race in the region that would make everybody less safe; their support of terrorist organizations in the past -- none of these things have been helpful."

Perhaps a generic meandering response was calculated. During the campaign and transition periods, Obama's condemnations of an Iranian nuclear weapon were more direct [Meet The Press, December 7th 2008]:

"[T]heir development of nuclear weapons would be unacceptable"

The question is: what does Iran think about this response? An overture to establishing diplomatic ties? The opportunity to forge a fresh, healthy relationship with the West? Perhaps ...

Perhaps their response here is the same as their response to Clinton's overtures last week?

Maybe Iran is reading between the lines. If Iran's stated goal is to rid the region of God's chosen people then why would they suddenly abandon this effort just because the West, the great Satan, wanted to be friends? Perhaps Iran will interpret this as weakness and step-up its plans to unleash hell?

Obama is doing things the way he said he would. Let us see what happens next.

The Shape of Things to Come

Incoming Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testified this week that the Obama administration will seek direct engagement with Iran, in hopes of convincing Tehran to "abandon its nuclear program and become a constructive regional actor." Iran's leaders had no comment, probably because they were still laughing too hard to speak. Later, with no apparent sense of irony, Clinton said Barack Obama would not agree to engaging with Hamas until it renounces violence, recognizes Israel, and respects previous agreements between Israelis and Palestinians -- in short, until it changes precisely the behaviors exhibited by Iran, only on a smaller scale and without a nuclear program. We can only suppose that's what Leftists mean by "nuance."

President-elect Obama's lapdogs in the press described the new approach as a "sharp contrast to President Bush's policy of refusing to deal with countries that did not first meet conditions set by the United States." For the record, the United States handed over all direct negotiation with Iran to the Europeans in 2003, at the behest of those wise liberal graybeards that knew better. Since that time, there has been only one "demand" placed on Iran: that it stop enriching uranium in order for diplomacy to move ahead. In the last year, the Europeans abandoned even that request. The most recent request by the G-8 was merely that Iran stop installing new centrifuges at Natanz, never mind what Iran was doing with its 5,000 operational centrifuges. Iran's answer to the G-8 was the same as it had been to the P-5+1 in 2007 and the EU-3 in 2005: No.

I am afraid that Iran is merely trying to run out the clock on the Bush administration, hanging on for a more gullible and naive American leader with whom to dance. Barack Obama has given the clearest possible indication that he is that leader, one who believes that the charisma that made the Germans swoon and a thrill go up Chris Matthews' leg can also make Iran's lunatic regime see the error in its ways and become a "constructive regional actor."

My bet is on Tel-Aviv. This is where the first mushroom cloud rises. A close second would be New York City. By the time this happens we will be too far down the road to effectively change course. It is simply days away.