[GonzoGOP]

This is Iran part two. The Muslims will have their popular uprising, and immediately the radicals will take over.

And if they do Israel is toast. Egypt has a massive army equipped with top of the line US equipment and commanded by Western trained officers. It won't be plinking old T-55s this time. Israel will have to face close to half a million troops armed with over a thousand M1A2 MBTs and another 2000 older M60A3 and upgraded soviet tanks. Worse they have the factories to build M1 MBTs so if they change sides we will have lost our entire weapons technology advantage over Iran and it's allies.

Israel doesn't have the manpower to take on a modern equipped Syrian and Egyptian army in a conventional war. This isn't 1973 where Israel had a big time advantage in quality. They still have an advantage, but not as big. And in 1973 the us pulled out all the stops to keep Israel supplied with ammo and replacement aircraft and tanks. That isn't going to happen under an Obama regime.

And if Israel can't win a conventional war thing could get "unconventional". And that scares the heck out of me.

[dfwgator]

And if they do Israel is toast

And every Arab capital will be toast. If Israel goes down, she is taking the entire Middle East with her.

[pallis]

Your analysis is certainly sound. America has no business backing dictators, especially to the extent we have backed Mubarak. We may be witnessing the beginning of Egypt’s end.

[crosshairs]

They still have an advantage, but not as big.

Wrong. They have the only advantage they need. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

[r9etb]

And if Israel can't win a conventional war thing could get "unconventional". And that scares the heck out of me.

Precisely.

About the only alternative to that, btw, would be to put NATO (that is, US) forces between them -- and that means we'd be pointing our guns toward the Egyptians. Hooooboy...

I'm beginning to wish ol' Ike hadn't stopped the British and French during the Suez Crisis, back in '56. Or that Churchill had gotten his way about the Hashemite dynasty, back in the '20s. Or.....

That damned shithole region just doesn't let old things go....