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RE: Any presidential — and Congressional consideration — of what to do about Iran in such a case requires a thorough assessment of the neighborhood..... if I were president I’d want as much real intelligence on the situation as possible — and I’d want to hear from Israel as to what they think

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First of all, I do not think that ANYONE of these candidates are advocating all out war with Iran. NOT AT THIS TIME. Not anyone of them.

The debate has always been about this -— WHAT INTELLIGENCE DATA DO WE CONSIDER ACTIONABLE?

I don’t believe that Bachmann believes that the current IAEA concern is cause enough to bomb Iran.

Let’s say that our intelligence data tells us that Iran is INDEED close to building a nuclear bomb that can reach Israel and Europe, WHAT DO WE DO? What ACTION DO WE TAKE?

We can’t spend money and lives on this foreign war that does not concern us, not when our debt is nearing $20 trillion.

Ron Paul seems to be giving me the impression that that’s EXACTLY what he would do. At least he’s not giving me the confidence, not based on his rhetoric and body language that he won’t react that way.

First of all, I do not think that ANYONE of these candidates are advocating all out war with Iran. NOT AT THIS TIME. Not anyone of them.

I think that Bachmann falsely made the Iranian nuclear threat to Israel and the US seem absolutely confirmed, real and immediate. So if one believes that how do they not act?

Will a President Ron Paul stand still and say -— this isn’t our business because if Iran wants to go to war with Israel, it’s Israel’s problem, not ours? They have the capability to fight back, so leave them alone. We can’t spend money and lives on this foreign war that does not concern us, not when our debt is nearing $20 trillion. Ron Paul seems to be giving me the impression that that’s EXACTLY what he would do. At least he’s not giving me the confidence, not based on his rhetoric and body language that he won’t react that way.

And that is your impression and I respect that even if I don't agree with it.

IMHO, it's because Ron Paul is a physician. He's dealt with life and death every day of his career -- learning how to cure a problem without killing the patient -- he's a thinker. It's all been life & death to him, which is why he doesn't rile or physically posture when dealing with things like that in ways that I see others do. It's not about ego posturing or aggression. But in all honesty, if God forbid all hell broke loose in some hypothetical scenario in that auditorium last night and no one knew what was happening or what to do, I'd put my bets on following that old man to safety rather than any of the others. He's the one who'd keep his cool and risk his butt if necessary.

The one who scares me on this issue with his body language and attitude is Newt. He reminds me of someone I'm related to -- a smart-ass, self-important sneering little dictator who'd fold when the heat is on -- who thinks he's smarter than everyone else on every subject, but he's not, he's an empty windbag. I've known guys like him -- in life and in business and the only thing frightens me about them is how easily they fool people with their supposed "intelligence" that is supposed to take the place of having any real core values whatever other than self-preservation.

But again, those are all impressions -- yours and mine. Different, but while you can argue facts, you can't argue with people's feelings about things.