Posted on 08/18/2010 3:28:53 PM PDT by nuconvert
President Obama says Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons is "unacceptable," but he appears resigned to the eventuality that the Islamic Republic will build a bomb. Iranian leaders are defiant in the face of sanctions. On Aug. 8, for example, the Kayhan newspaper, mouthpiece for the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, declared, "Iran does not consider any cost higher than the loss of prestige of capitulating to the West and does not consider any benefit higher than the benefit of becoming nuclear."
Arab and Israeli newspapers both report that visiting U.S. officials suggest they could extend a nuclear umbrella should Iran develop a bomb, de facto acknowledgment that Obama favors containment over military force.
Today, strategic debate revolves around how a nuclear Iran would behave: Would it bomb Israel? Would it supply terrorist groups? Would Iran become more aggressive in the region? Seldom discussed, however, is how nuclear weapons might change Iran itself. That could be the most profound transformation of all.
When Iran develops nuclear weapons, determining their command-and-control will become America's overriding intelligence objective. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's genocidal rhetoric shocks the West. Would he control the bomb? Not likely. In the Islamic Republic, the president is subordinate to the supreme leader. Khamenei may be the ultimate political authority in Iran, but will an aide carrying launch codes generated daily shadow him day and night? Equally unlikely; the ayatollah allows no aide so close.
Possession is 90% of the law. And in that sense, on a day-to-day basis, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps - which will "own" the arsenal - will control it. This is no comfort: Not only do the Revolutionary Guards contain Iran's most radical ideologues, but they also remain effectively a big, black box to Western analysts
(Excerpt) Read more at michaelrubin.org ...
Nukes will transform Iran into a flat glassy looking desert.
He’s already announced his intentions - he plans on nuking Israel. He’s said that for the past several years. Yet, Pres. Jughead just can’t imagine that anyone would consider using nuclear weapons frivilously; despite the claims from Iran’s leadership that the first thing on their agenda is the elimination and extermination of the Zionists.
You beat me to it.
Having Alfred E. Neuman controlling our nukes doesn’t exactly make for peaceful sleeping either. ;-)
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