Iran and Saudi Arabia

Why would Iran try to kill the Saudi Ambassador to the United States? If you wanted to you could come up with all sorts of grand Tom Clanceyan conspiracy theories, but often the simplest answer is probably correct. Iran and Saudi Arabia are regional rivals for power in the Middle East. Because the Iranians know that targeting a US or Israeli ambassador would mean certain war, they chose the next best thing to accomplish two goals: demonstrate their power to the Sunni Saudis and show the U.S. that they have a global reach.

Using our southern border shows our vulnerability; not to mention highlighting the ease with which the Mexican cartels (armed with Fast and Furious guns) can be used to continually degrade our national security.

The operation was amateurish and thankfully failed, but it does give one pause that there may be some destabilizing elements in the highest reaches of the Iranian regime. What if this was a rogue operation? Will the Saudis reply militarily? Do they have the capability to considering they had to pay off their "Arab Spring" protestors? Will this provocation increase Israeli fears of Iran's reach or do they already know their capabilities to operate in the west?

There are many other questions that could come out of this incident...stay tuned.

What will they say now?

We all remember the outrage from liberals around the world and here in America when the Abu Graib prison "abuse" stories hit the front pages. From Ted Kennedy to Nancy Pelosi to Barney Frank to Barack Obama, leftist politicians shouted from the rooftops about the so-called "abuses" perpetrated by members of our armed forces.

If they want to know about abuse, they need to read this article from the Times of London. It outlines what some have said about the treatment of Iranian protesters in Iranian prisons. Here's a short list of some of the alleged abuses:

• Fingernails pulled out
• Forced to lick dirty toilet seats
• Hair pulled out
• Beatings
• Death

Now, how does this stack up with putting a pair of panties on a prisoner's head or making them stand on a box with their hands outstretched? It doesn't. If liberals want to look for cruelty and find an offense around every corner, they don't need to look at our military, at George W. Bush or any other demon they love to hate. There is a stark example of evil in the Middle East.

We all need to wake up and see the threat that is coming over the horizon. The Iranian leadership are dasdardly little men who thrive on power and will not think twice about killing one of their own innocent citizens on the street to make a point. What do you think they will do with a nuclear weapon?

Ok liberals, here's your chance. Will you speak out against REAL abuse as harshly as you did about prisoners being embarrassed?

Uh Oh!

Iran is steadily increasing its uranium processing.

If that doesn't send chills down your spine, I don't know what will. It seems they have almost doubled their current yield since August and some say they could have a crude bomb ready as early as next year. It wasn't long ago that the experts predicted it would take 5, 10 or 15 years before Iran became a member of the Nuclear Club.

At this time last year, many people, led by the media, were howling that the National Intelligence Estimate showed that Iran had halted its uranium enrichment program in 2003. Oops.

Where are they now? Where are the people that pummelled the President and his national security team about saber-rattling? What happened to the cries of woe against confronting Iran?

They are silent because they were fighting tooth and nail to get what they wanted. They wanted the President and his party hobbled leading up to the 2008 elections. They wanted every American to associate all the bad in this world with the word "Bush". Well, they got their wish.

I hope Obama is ready.

Iranian President Ahmedinejad is a nut. We all know that. Is he a nut willing to use nuclear weapons against Israel or Europe or America? I think so. He is willing, but I don't think he would actually go through with it. Granted, I haven't sat down with him over a bowl of dates and a cup of tea, but he has to know that our response would be devastating.

However, the threat of using them may be enough to get what he wants. What does he want? Israel obliterated. Maybe favorable trading conditions. The West out of the Middle East. To be ruler of "Greater Persia". I have no idea (well, the Israel thing is a definite).

This is a time that we all need to be paying attention to what is going on in the world. We have to hold our leaders to a tremendously high standard when they tell us what they think should be done and how they plan to do it. This is not a game anymore (it never was). All of the campaign speeches, screaming and fainting are over.

Big boy rules are in effect now.

We have a few months until we open the morning paper and read:

"Iran test fires first nuclear-tipped missile with an effective range that encompasses Israel and most of Europe."

I REALLY hope Obama is ready. *sigh*