Iran Must Finally Pay a Price

We tell the Iranians that the military option is "on the table." But three decades of playing cat-and-mouse with American power have emboldened Iran's rulers. We have played by their rules, and always came up second best.

Next door, in Iraq, Iranians played arsonists and firemen at the same time. They could fly under the radar, secure in the belief that the U.S., so deeply engaged there and in Afghanistan, would be reluctant to embark on another military engagement in the lands of Islam.

This is all part of a larger pattern. As Tehran has wreaked havoc on regional order and peace over the last three decades, the world has indulged it. To be sure, Saddam Hussein launched a brutal war in 1980 against his nemesis, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. That cruel conflict, which sought to quarantine the revolution, ended in a terrible stalemate; and it never posed an existential threat to the clerical state that Khomeini had built. Quite to the contrary, that war enabled the new rulers to consolidate their hold.

How ‘bout some “accidents” at their oil terminals that put them out of action for the forseeable future?

Hmmmm. Messy, get all the Greens upset..... still, despite the curb appeal of that idea, probably less direct than messing with their arsenals and factories that are making deliveries to the Badr Brigade, Mahdi Army, and Hisbollah.

Besides, the supply disruption would have consequences for innocent bystanders in Europe and the Far East.

Good ideas. All of them. Now all we need is a leader. We used to have one, but W abdicated about 3 years ago.

And what’s coming down the pike? Two commies and a senile old commie-lover.

If I were the Mullahs, I’d be feeling pretty cocky about now.

"i´m shure this happens. but it happens in “secret” but if you bomb iranian teritory even it is a terrorist traing camp this is an act of war. same goes if you kill one of their leaders by military. so this could be the beginning of an all out war. and it doesn´t look like your government really does want another war right now. and iran knows this. so they feel save.

IRAN CLAIMING WE HAVE BOMBED THEM OR KILLED THEIR LEADERS IS ONE THING, PROVING IT BEYOND DOUBT IS ENTIRELY SOMETHING ELSE. IRAN DOESN'T NEED SUCH PROOF TO ENGAGE IN ATTACKS ON US. IN FACT THEY ARE ALREADY DOING THIS BY SUPPLYING AND TRAINING OTHERS TO DO SO ON THEIR BEHALF.

AMERICA NOT WANTING A WAR AND AMERICA REFUSING TO FIGHT A WAR ARE TTWO ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THINGS AND ONE MUST NOT BE CONFUSED WITH THE OTHER. MY BELIEF IS THAT IF IRAN DOES NOT HEED THE WARNINGS BEING GIVEN, ACTION, MODEST AT FIRST BUT EVER ESCALATING WILL BEGIN AND CONTINUE UNTIL THE MESSAGE IS RECEIVED LOUD AND CLEAR.

everybody here knows if iran ever will atack someone it will be the state of israel first. and EU has No geo political interest in Israel. nor is it a important trade partner for EU. We just have no beef with this state. Shure nobody whants israel to be atacked but most view it as non of our buisness. at least not enough of our buisness to send troops.

Yes, I have many European friends scattered about, i.e., Germany, Belgium, UK, Italy, etc. Most espouse this view. Unfortunately, much like 1914 and 1939 many Europeans are ignoring the real threat that is posed by Iran. Instead of taking out the threat now when it's much easier to do, they believe that diplomatic relations will solve the issues. History says something much different. Despots, like those who are in charge in Iran, only use the time wasted by diplomacy to continue down their path to world domination.

Unlike many here, I don't believe Iran should be turned into a "glass parking lot". Whether or not anyone wants to admit it, the USA has been in a state of war with Iran since 1979. The Mullahs hold onto power by the thinnest of threads and they are in a very weak theocratic majority. I also have Iranian friends who are very pro-western and want Iran to modernize. However, most are not willing to fight to gain power. What happens internally in Iran is of no concern to me, personally. When Iran is killing our troops directly, as they are in Iraq, that is a different matter entirely.

I would not at all be surprised to hear that Israel has taken out Iran's nuke sites in the not too distant future. It appears to me that all the hand wringing the USA and Europe are doing is at Israel's peril. At the same time allowing Iran to build a nuclear arsenal and ballistic missiles capable of 4000 km range puts much more than just Israel in range. Interesting times we live in, huh?

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