The Inside-Out World of the "Realists"

White is black, black is white:

The attempt to connect American presence in Iraq to a grand Middle East plan that includes the destruction of Iran's nuclear capability seems to have taken a twisted turn so as to scare the American public already preparing for a new president in 2008. The corkscrew logic suggests that the best defense for the United States against Iran's nuclear weapon development is swiftly to remove our forces as much and as far as possible from the Middle East.

This thesis is predicated on Iranian nuclear ambitions ending at the time of the imminent demise of the dastardly Ahmahdinejad. This change will come about sooner, it is argued, if the Americans would only get out of Iraq -- and preferably the entire region -- as soon as possible. American military presence in the Middle East is deemed to carry an intrinsic offensive character and thus threatens the peace-loving Persians.

In other words the "good guys" in Iran will kick out the "bad guys" if Washington will just carry on with diplomatic negotiations and refrain from threatening Tehran with loss of their nuclear weapon development sites. Just one thing is forgotten: Iran's nuclear ambitions began way back in the days of the Shah. It was he who originally decided that Iran would have to match India and Pakistan's nuclear weapon and missile programs.

The Gulf States quivered with fear over the growth of Persian military and naval power as early as the seventies. A temporary ban on nuclear development of all kinds occurred after the clerical revolution, but that was rescinded in the late eighties long before Ahmadinejad came into power. He just has been more aggressive in Iran's ambitions and open defiance of United Nations supervision.

In order for diplomatic and economic pressure to work on Iran, it must be backed up by a credible military threat. That's what the two carrier battle groups in and around the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea provide -- not the U.S. ground forces in Iraq.

The Iranian plans for the acquisition of nuclear weapons is not for defensive purposes. On the contrary, the only utility of these weapons would be offensive in nature. Iran's sole regional rival from whom it might have feared attack was Iraq, and that potential no longer exists.

The whining of the cringers and wobblers is simply an effort once again to pretend a problem only exists because the United States is willing to stand up and challenge. The U.S. is made to appear the aggressive party in the Middle East while the Iranian ruling clique is peaceful and with no offensive aims, in spite of its creation and guidance of Hezbollah, aid to Hamas, and arming of anti-American Shia militias in Iraq.

Quoth Papa Teflon:

"It takes an awfully high IQ to believe something so dumb."