Being Blind

Reading the news on if Israel decides to "pre-emptively" strike Iran's nuclear production facilities, even after the concensus of the US intelligence community is that there is no clear and convincing evidence Iran will build a bomb, only they're going in the direction that gives them the option with additional work, I was struck with an obvious problem.

While all the specialist and analysists on the Middle East and especially Iran talk about what Iran may or may not do against the US, which includes strikes on US allies' oil production and storage facilities in the Persian Gulf, namely Kuwait, includes temporary blockades of the Strait of Hormuz stopping all international shipping, and including stepping up aide to insurgents in Afghanistan, all of them state the obvious.

The obvious is that all the war games can't predict what will happen and all the "experts" say it is, and I use the word they use, "impossible" to know what the senior leadership is thinking and what any individual unit in Iran's government might do without permission or knowledge of Iran's leadership. This includes the Iranian military and the Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

In short, we are totally blind to what Iran's leaders are thinking and will decide. The best we can do is be prepared and wait, and hope the diplomacy and sanctions work. But it is clear Iran may not build a nuclear bomb after all. It may all be just hype. We saw this with Saddham Hussein in Iraq. And we may be seeing this with the leadership in Iran. Just diplomatic hype to advance their position in the Middle East.

And that's the issue, not the US but the countries in the Middle East. They all say that's Iran's focus, not the US, with whom they don't want to get involved in military action. They know while they'll inflict damage they'll lose. Their focus in their prestige and Israel. And that we aren't blind, just intentionlly trying not to admit.

That's because the politicians want Iran to be a US enemy. They want to attack Iran to show US prowess in the world. It's wrong and wrongheaded, but don't tell them that. They too are intentionally blind to the facts and reality. They're as determined to hate as the leaders of Iran are determined to hate.

And the hate of leaders always has a price and cost, always the people, those who fight the wars, and subsequently die, and those who are the innocent victims of war. They don't care about them, only their own personal and political prestige. And that's what this is all about. Not the reality. Not the possibility of a peaceful solution. Not the reality of a longer term answer for the Middle East.

It's just about power and hate. On both sides. And that is what we must fight. Not the war. Not Iran. But the enemies within, those with the words of hate.