That's fine - I'm not saying that invasion/military action is necessarily the best course - but if we have decided that it isn't, we shouldn't be playing up the fact that Iran is fighting us! Because that is saying "we know you are fighting us, and we are going to do nothing about it." That has repercussions not only in the particular "cold/proxy war" against Iran, but for our "national honor" as well - in short, it makes us a more appealing target to others.
Also, your statement carries a presumption that the way we handled USSR was necessarily the optimal course. That's not necessarily correct! And even if it was, our calculated reluctance to engage USSR openly (thus influencing the way we behaved in Vietnam, etc.) had a rational basis, owing to the USSR's huge nuclear deterrent. But Iran has no such deterrent. Thus what we are saying to the world (not just to Iran, mind you!) at this time is: "When we know someone is engaging in acts of war against us, we will complain about it. Then we will do nothing of substance. Because we are very easily deterred. You don't even have to have nukes to deter us nowadays. We are scared even of attacking a country like Iran. That's how easily deterred we are."
Is this a good message to be sending to the world in your opinion? If your answer is "no", then what's your point? Because that's all I'm saying.
You keep overlooking the fact that the American people have rejected a foreign policy which takes the fight to our enemies. How do you overcome that fact?
The answer is: you don't overplay your hand. If you're right that the political will isn't there to sustain military action, that's ok, but then we need to shut up about Iran's fighting against us. It does no good whatsoever and makes us look absolutely weak to (a) openly acknowledge proof of Iran's complicity in a proxy war against us but then (b) do nothing of substance besides the talking. If you disagree (and you seem to, since you keep responding..), then tell me how it helps to jibber-jabber about Iran and nothing more?
How is the NY Times or any other media outlet printing claims of Iranian involvement "...playing up the fact that Iran is fighting us..."?
But if a military action was on the horizon then the administration would have to be revealing the actions Iran has taken against US forces in order to prepare the US population for that action. It could not be sprung out of nowhere.
There is no fear of attacking Iran wrt its activities. The real fear should be that we go into an action and have the lily-lived American people undermine and reject it. Our principle enemy is at home not in Iran.
Nor has there been much of anything that can be called real proof of Iranian government involvement.