Re your #17 -
One of my pet theories is that Saudi Arabia has a lot of influence on what the US will allow Israel to do and what we won't allow them to do.
There have been a lot of edicts imposed upon Israel that IMHO were not in the best interests of that nation.
Such as not letting them "finish" the 7 days war or ultimately retain much if any of the territory they took from their invaders. And we are constantly intervening on behalf of the "Palistinian State", as well as funding it's terrorism and enriching it's boss terrorists with billions of US taxpayers dollars.
This recent Gaza pullout capitulation fiasco was either the final act of dementia by PM whatzisname before his last unfortunate brain blowout (whereupon he has been religated to the produce department pending assumption of room temprature), or very heavy manipulation by the US Secretary of State, who in turn is being obedient to our Saudi masters.
Should we resist any Saudi desires for us to diddle over our "Allie" Israel at their behest, we'd probably be riding our bikes to work and eating grass within 3 months.
And they know it.
The only way Iran gets whacked is if the Saudis consider Iran to be a threat to their oil fields, as was Saddamn.
Which as far as I know (not much, really) they likely do.
Then they will, as always, let us do the dirty work for them. How many Saudi troops are with the Coallition in Iraq, by the way?
But if Israel really comes under a serious attack, I do not expect us to be allowed to do much about it.
The Saudis will have us by the cahunas and the Chicoms will have us around the neck.
Oh; BTW; I fully expect that said attack will come fairly soon, and end up in a place called Meggido.
And Israel will not be needing us after all.
...Read the Book for details.
Been saying the same things for years about the Saudis controlling our Middle East policy especially where Israel is concerned.
At no time have we intervened on Israel's behalf when she came under attack since she became a state.
We only show up to restrain her and pressure her to give back the God given spoils that are rightfully hers.
For that interference on our part America I believe has been under steadily increasing judgment from God since Israel's rebirth.
This I believe is the reason we have not had a decisive victory in any of our major military campaigns starting with Korea to the present.
Since we have hindered trough intense political pressure the ability of Israel to establish secure and recognizable borders God has seen that our own are no longer secure and become less recognizable everyday.By pressuring her to give up land that was providing a good deal of her income and pressuring her to provide for the very people who are out to destroy her we have put her economic well being in jepordy as well. I expect this country very soon to experience great economic troubles also.
In the Bible God has a habit of sending the same judgements that fall on Israel to those nations that where His instrument in applying them.
Jer 30:16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
Jer 30:17 For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after.
The event you see on the horizon is the event outlined in Ezekiel 38 & 39.
All Saudi Arabia has to do to collapse the American finiancial house of cards is begin to accecpt euros for oil and stop demanding for payment only in dollars.
Suddenly nobody will want to get American dollars at any price. Why else is China willing to sell us things at below cost over here to make them.
They need oil, and Ameirca has this deal with the house of Saud...