[Aussie Dasher]

Exactly how much longer are we going to sit on our hands?

[JustDoItAlways]

We should have already taken action with at least a complete UN economic sanction plan.

But since China and Russia and the world oil market wouldn't let us, we are now stuck with all the other options (as limited as those may be.)

And just noting that Europe's plan of constructive engagement through the IAEA and diplomacy has totally failed as well.

Not many option left. One may be just dealing with the fact that Iran will soon be one of the nuclear powers. Can't be the best option available.

[hershey]

Well...Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC with Chris Matthews, was very positive about Condi Rice's chances of stopping any military action by the US. According to Mitchell, Condi has GW's ear, not like Powell, who was always the odd man out. No, Condi's powerful, she'll keep us from doing anything but talk, talk, talk while they work away at nukes. (Hard not to scream and throw something heavy at the TV.)

[Marine_Uncle]

Look folks. I am not going into all the stages they must surmount. I had written a rather lengthly explaination yesterday at another posting by blam.
Think of it this way. The tiny centifuge cascade system they have gotten to work cannot be used to create a sufficient amount of U-235 (% of enrichment within the output stage), that would even come close to the required enrichment level that can be considered fissile in sufficient amounts.
It will take a very sophisticated huge system, literally thousands of serial stages coupled in multiparallel form, to eventually be able to provide a system that can actually provide weapon grade uranium.
What they have done, is finally put together a very little system (lab level), that an produce a miniscule amount of U-235 of a percent high enough to be used in some type nuclear reactors to produce electricity. That is all they have been able to accomplish thus far.
It will require years of building a huge centifuge system fully automated to produce weapon grade material.
It is simple as that.
The L/MSM are not inventing anything here. Iran does not have the capability to produce weapon grade uranium.
And guess what.
It cannot at this point even create enough 3-5% (the bear minumum percentage of U-235 isotope within the output seperation to even MAKE ONE FUEL ROD FOR ANY OF THEIR REACTORS. This is the reality.
Instead of going whacko, just read what I have repeated from other posts.
What everyone is anxious about is they now can build on their little unit, and the many other parts of the process no one ever talks about to eventually, say within a year or two, be able to produce, if they are lucky, enough say 5% enriched uranium that they can then create fuel rods for, which of course would go toward their long term plan to provide their own fuel rods for their reactors which will be used to for producing electricity.
And please note. Yes, with the right kind of reactor one can if they know how, remove spent fuel rods and through various chemical processes extract plutonium, in this case PU-239, which would could be used for a low yield atomic bomb.
But they could go this route over a period of time even if they where able to in clandestine form, switch Russian supplied fuel rods.
So without getting into a lot of details as to how technical and difficult a process is, for obtaining sufficient amounts of highly enriched uranium for a bomb, please realize they are a long way off from that level.

[Old_Mil]

Personally, I believe that air strikes on Iran would be a mistake at this point in time. If we do this, we are going to be starting a war that we aren't going to finish, and a half decade from now when Iran does build a bomb they are going to remember.

Either go in, depose the government and take their program apart on the ground, or do nothing.

[TomasUSMC]

That means in 17 days the first VIED with a nuke in it will be on its way to the Green Zone. In fact they can just spread the rumor that there is one in Baghdad and all hell will break loose.

Nuke Iran or get Nuked.

Or maybe we are going to wait for proof this time.

No. NO TIME TO WASTE. HIT THEM NOW AND AGAIN AND AGAIN PRESIDENT BUSH.

[traumer]

We need to get the UN involved... :o)

[RayChuang88]

I wonder has Iran started to build an atomic bomb based on the Little Boy bomb with its "gunbarrel" design of colliding two critical masses of U-235. The yield of the bomb would be approximately 12 kT, which can still cause quite lot of damage (as what happened at Hiroshima showed).

They may be quite a ways from building a plutonium-based implosion device, since that requires far more sophisticated technology.

[ccmay]

Everyone's talking about bunker busters to get this centrifuge site, but I think we should attack the power sources. A cruise missile a day, for a year if necessary, until they get the message that no power lines or generators will ever be allowed near the facility.

-ccm

[goldstategop]

The West has been snookered while Iran has laughed its arse off at their stupidity and spinelessness.

(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")

[The Sons of Liberty]

This debate is eerily similar to the debate on whether we needed to take action against Iraq and their WMDs. The President has been savaged by the press, both here and abroad, because none have been found ( although that doesn't mean there are none ), so he may be a bit reluctant to make a move on Iran. After all, can he really trust the intelligence estimates he receives?

One thing though. When Secretary Rice was on TV yesterday, she had an expression that clearly indicated extreme concern.