MetaFilter posts tagged with Iran and war

Or have we eaten on the insane root that takes the reason prisoner?

The Whelk — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:09:04 -0800

“Josephine had practically every desirable personal characteristic, except wisdom and mercy.” Gee, that sounds like she actually isn’t a nice person at all! Gary Brecher (previously) reviews Banquo’s Ghosts, a political-minded spy thriller from National Review editor Richard Lowry and novelist Keith Korman. Lowry describes it as an "episode of “24″ written by Proust. " Bonus Conservative Potboiler Review: Matt Taibbi on William F. Buckley's Tucker's Last Stand.

"Ships currently have no defense against a ballistic missile attack."

Keter — Wed, 27 May 2009 13:46:47 -0800

The aircraft carrier, a majestic and grand symbol of American naval might... susceptible to swarming small-boat assault and weak against ballistic missiles, nevermind an anti-ship ballistic missile. Is it time to reevaluate the role of the aircraft carrier in a modern naval strategy?

The Economist: The World in 2009

goodnewsfortheinsane — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 19:00:30 -0800

In 2009, a remarkably gifted politician, confronting a remarkably difficult set of challenges, will have to learn to say "No we can't", Guantánamo will prove a moral minefield, economic recovery will be invisible to the naked eye, governments must prepare for the day they stop financial guarantees, we will judge our commitment to sustainability, scientists should research the causes of religion, we will all be potential online paparazzi, English will have more words than any other language (but it's meaningless), Afghanistan will see a surge of Western (read: American) troops, Iran will continue its nuclear quest while diplomacy lies in shambles, the sea floor is the new frontier, we should rethink aging, (non-)voters will continue to thwart the European project -- but cheap travel will continue to buoy it -- though it has some unfinished business to attend to, and a Nordic defence bond will blossom.

The Economist: The World in 2009. Previously: 2008, 2007. How did we do last time around? And what will we probably be wrong about this time? Guest contributions: President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva seeks greater international cooperation and sees a growing global role for the larger emerging economies. Queen of Jordan Rania calls for education reform. Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd calls upon mid-size powers to be creative and effective with their influence. Prime Minister of Spain José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero emphasizes the importance of transparency and solidarity in Europe. Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko, wedged between Russia and the EU, cites historical precedent. Former Secretary of State of the United States, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Henry Kissinger argues America will be less powerful, but will still be the essential nation in creating a new world order. Mayor Boris Johnson of London argues against over-regulation. Elections to watch: Brazil, Chile, European Parliament, Germany, Indonesia, Israel, Japan. Also: Russia will enter its first real difficult years under Putin, Brown might not make it, we won't ban nukes but we can pretend, Ontario will receive economic help from other provinces, Australians will grow ever more thirsty, and Britain needs to make stuff again. World in 2009 blog.

of course the people don't want war

plexi — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:24:47 -0800

Welcome to the October Surprise. The Dutch intelligence service, the AIVD, has called off an operation aimed at infiltrating and sabotaging Iran's weapons industry due to an assessment that a US attack on the Islamic Republic's nuclear program is imminent, according to a report in the country's De Telegraaf (dutch) newspaper on Friday.

Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran

ryoshu — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:45:37 -0800

Bush administration officials held a meeting recently in the Vice President's office to discuss ways to provoke a war with Iran.

HERSH: There was a dozen ideas proffered about how to trigger a war. The one that interested me the most was why don't we build - we in our shipyard - build four or five boats that look like Iranian PT boats. Put Navy seals on them with a lot of arms. And next time one of our boats goes to the Straits of Hormuz, start a shoot-up.

Oddly, Hersh's editor torpedoed the story because the plans were rejected (2 minutes into the YouTube video). Previously:

US uses MEK to carry out terrorist attacks in Iran.
Gulf of Tonkin
Operation Northwoods

Previously on MeFi:

Magnum Photos' two newest nominees

madamjujujive — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 19:29:44 -0800

American-Dutch photographer Peter van Agtmael and English photographer Olivia Arthur are the two newest nominees recently welcomed into Magnum Photos. Agtmael's images of Afghanistan and Iraq are very powerful - he discusses his work in Conscientious. Arthur's recent work has focused on women's experiences in what she calls the Middle Distance. "The Magnum Photos selection process for new members is legendary for its toughness. Becoming a full Member of Magnum Photos is a process that takes place over at least four years, with candidates evolving from the status of Nominee, to Associate, to Member, each evolution in status requiring a vote by the Magnum Photos Members." This year, member status was granted to: Antoine d’Agata, French (many images NSFW) Jonas Bendiksen, Norwegian Alec Soth, American

Secret moves against Iran

homunculus — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:00:05 -0800

Preparing the Battlefield: The Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran.

Admiral Fallon

homunculus — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 16:59:59 -0800

The Man Between War and Peace. "As head of U. S. Central Command, Admiral William 'Fox' Fallon is in charge of American military strategy for the most troubled parts of the world. Now, as the White House has been escalating the war of words with Iran, and seeming ever more determined to strike militarily before the end of this presidency, the admiral has urged restraint and diplomacy. Who will prevail, the president or the admiral?" [Via Think Progress.]

All is forgiven, tout est oublie.

psmealey — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 11:28:47 -0800

Sarko l'Americain addresses US Congress. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has told the US Congress it can count on France's support against terrorism in Afghanistan and Iran's nuclear plan. [Full Text here PDF]. Here also, is a recent take on Franco-American relations From the French and Indian Wars, to the American Revolution, the French Revolution, the Louisiana Purchase, World War I, World War II, the Vietnam War<>, the Cold War and through de Gaulle, Giscard-d'Estaing, Mitterrand, Chirac and Freedom Fries, there has never been a dull moment in this long and complicated relationship between two of the world's great powers.

Bomb Bomb Bomb, Bomb Bomb Iran

kirkaracha — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 08:01:02 -0800

The Secret History of the Impending War with Iran That the White House Doesn't Want You to Know [print version] profiles former NSC Middle East policy experts Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann and how the Bush administration turned down a March 2003 peace offer from Iran. Leverett and Mann wrote a New York Times op-ed last December that was redacted by the CIA (discussed previously). C-SPAN interview with Flynt Leverett. Bomb Iran? U.S. Requests Bunker-Buster Bombs U.S. to Impose New Sanctions Targeting Iran's Military

Valerie Plame v. The CIA

homunculus — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 11:35:23 -0800

Wilson et al v. McConnell et al. This site has all the legal documents surrounding Valerie Plame's legal case against the CIA over her new book. CIA censors blacked out 10 percent of the copy, as can seen in this excerpt from the book, and Plame is not allowed to speak freely in her interviews. [Via No Quarter.] In other news, Plame think it's entirely possible that the Bush administration could start a war with Iran based on twisted intelligence.

Iraq was just the beginning.

FeldBum — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 00:43:13 -0800

Iraq was just the beginning. According to retired General Wesley Clark, a top-secret memo detailed a plan for “taking out” seven countries in five years, ending with Iran. Wesley Clark: I said, “Are we still going to war with Iraq?” And he said, “Oh, it’s worse than that.” He reached over on his desk. He picked up a piece of paper. And he said, “I just got this down from upstairs” -- meaning the Secretary of Defense’s office -- “today.” And he said, “This is a memo that describes how we’re going to take out seven countries in five years, starting with Iraq, and then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and, finishing off, Iran.” I said, “Is it classified?” He said, “Yes, sir.”

Adding up US subsidies for auto travel with and without the costs of war

salvia — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 02:02:34 -0800

In the U.S., motorists do not pay their way. The US government spends more on highways and other auto-related expenses than it receives from auto-related taxes, unlike almost every country in Europe. In a recent report [pdf], Mark Delucchi calculates automobile-related costs and revenues in three different ways and concludes the subsidy is around 20-70 cents per gallon or $24-105 billion in 2002. But what are automobile-related costs, you ask? Largely tucked away in footnotes and background papers [pdf] are his careful considerations about which expenditures to include and what portion of costs relate directly to automobile oil use, for everything from the highway patrol, to fighting brushfires, to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, to military activity in the Middle East. Don't miss Report #15, in which Delucchi and coauthor James Murphy seek to calculate: “If the U.S. transportation sector did not use oil, how much would the U.S. federal government reduce its military commitment in the Persian Gulf?” [pdf] (especially Table 15-12, which summarizes much of the paper). [previously] [originally via]

Shifting Targets - The Administration’s plan for Iran by Seymour Hersh

y2karl — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:25:33 -0800

This summer, the White House, pushed by the office of Vice-President Dick Cheney, requested that the Joint Chiefs of Staff redraw long-standing plans for a possible attack on Iran, according to former officials and government consultants... Now the emphasis is on 'surgical' strikes on Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities in Tehran and elsewhere, which, the Administration claims, have been the source of attacks on Americans in Iraq. What had been presented primarily as a counter-proliferation mission has been reconceived as counterterrorism... The former intelligence official added...'Meanwhile, the politicians are saying, 'You can’t do it, because every Republican is going to be defeated, and we’re only one fact from going over the cliff in Iraq.' But Cheney doesn’t give a rat’s ass about the Republican worries, and neither does the President.'

Shifting Targets by Seymour Hersh
See also 'The President Has Accepted Ethnic Cleansing'

Oooh wah heee everyone on the war train (again)

psmealey — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:00:18 -0800

Lieberman-Kyl’s Iran amendment passes. By a vote of 76-22, the Senate passed the Lieberman-Kyl amendment, which threatens to “combat, contain and [stop]” Iran via “military instruments.” Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) called the amendment “Cheney’s fondest pipe dream” and said it could “read as a backdoor method of gaining Congressional validation for military action.”

Considering a war with Iran

homunculus — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 15:30:56 -0800

"Considering a war with Iran: A discussion paper on WMD in the Middle East" (PDF). A new study by two British scholars claims that the United States has the capacity for and may be prepared to launch a massive assault on Iran. This comes just in time for the post Labor Day product rollout. [Via Informed Comment.]

War Games

lenny70 — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:30:28 -0800

Angered by the previous 'Assault on Iran', the Union of Islamic Student Societies of Iran hit back yesterday by the official debut of Special Operation: Rescue the Nuke Scientist. [YouTube]

"50% of all Saudi fighters in Iraq come here as suicide bombers"

amberglow — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 16:50:29 -0800

The "same people who attacked us on 9/11"? It may be the very latest talking point from the Administration, but it's actually true--altho it's not Al Qaeda in Iraq, but Saudis. Although Bush administration officials have frequently lashed out at Syria and Iran, accusing it of helping insurgents and militias here, the largest number of foreign fighters and suicide bombers in Iraq come from a third neighbor, Saudi Arabia ... A historical note: 15 of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were Saudis.

Will Joementum carry us to Iran?

psmealey — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 10:11:54 -0800

Senator Lieberman advocates military strike on Iran Newsfilter: Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) on CBS's Face the Nation yesterday morning laid out a case for the US taking military action against Iran. Glenn Greenwald says that while neocon true believers are becoming harder to find in the GOP ranks, Holy Joe embodies one in its purest form. The Salem-News simply calls his demands cowardly, and others wonder if he has a point.

No Blood for Blubber!

Kattullus — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 13:04:07 -0800

Bomb Iceland instead of Iran is the modest proposal of Princeton Professor of Political Economy Uwe Reinhardt in today's Daily Princetonian. Some enterprising Aussies are way ahead of him on that one. Heck, it wouldn't even be the first time the U.S. and Britain occupied Iceland. [via RÚV, the Icelandic state broadcaster]

Gulf's New Ground Zero

Burhanistan — Sun, 08 Apr 2007 09:08:19 -0800

Gulf's New Ground Zero. A busy Iranian port will be a crucial nerve centre if the long-threatened US attack comes.

Fighting PTSD the only way they know how.

MapGuy — Sat, 07 Apr 2007 07:59:03 -0800

Behind Enemy Lines Liberal use of this narcotic produced with high voltage found to reduce the affects of PTSD, in coalition and British forces in particular.

Doing our homework on the Middle East

LobsterMitten — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 14:41:44 -0800

22 basic suggested readings on the Middle East from history professor and informed commenter on Middle Eastern affairs Juan Cole.

The Redirection

homunculus — Sun, 25 Feb 2007 09:22:27 -0800

The Redirection. "Is the Administration’s new policy aiding our enemies in the war on terrorism?" New article by Seymour Hersh in the New Yorker.

Bombing Iran - motive, opportunity and means

RichLyon — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 11:27:18 -0800

Bombing Iran - motive, opportunity, means (and thuggish accomplice).