Floatingbadger Political Community Site

   So.... The NIE report said that Iran was no closer than 5 years from building a nuclear weapon if they resumed work right now.  The United States Intelligence community believes, correctly or incorrectly that Iran canceled their nuclear weapons program back in 2003.  When Mr. Bush heard this report, he said (and those in his administration said) that the report proves that Iran is still a threat.  He doesn't dispute the findings, but he downplays the bit about the nuclear weapon program being snuffed out.

  Until he visits Israel and the Isralies tell him that they believe that Iran IS building a nuclear weapon and is close to completing it.  Faced with this news, do Bush say "Well our intelligence says he isn't, so lets talk" ??  Nope..  He says that he can't control what our intelligence community thinks and that HE believes as the Israelis do.

   Then please stay in Israel, since you like them so much, Mr Bush.  Either agree with your own people or not.  Don't just go along with something until someone you like disputes it and then come out of the closet.

  Okay, the NIE report is out.  The intelligence communities OFFICIAL line is that Iran is NOT pursuing a nuclear weapons program.  Now everyone has latched onto this as vindication that Bush is full of crap about the need to attack Iran.

  Now... I don't like Bush.  I think he's full of crap and I don't need the NIE report to prove it.  My problem is that the NIE report on Iraq before the war said that Hussein did have weapons of mass destruction and he WAS in bed with terrorists, both of which turned out to be false.  My problem is that we're using an agency who's credibility is currently suspect to attack someone who's credibility is already destroyed.  Does anyone else see the danger here?

  Okay, so the NIE report finally came out and after being picked over by Bush goons for "language issues" it STILL says that Iran has given up their nuclear weapons program as early as 2003 and shows no signs of returning to it.

Why does the National Security Adviser, Stephen Hadley say that the NIE report “confirms that we were right to be worried about Iran seeking to develop nuclear weapons.” ?

    Lying to the public I can understand.  Trying to spin things in their favor I can understand, but asking us to believe that denying Iran has a nuclear weapon program really means they are in danger of getting nuclear weapons is so far away from reality that I have got to believe that the Whitehouse has legalized drug use...... but only inside the Whitehouse.  Iran is now a threat simply because SOMEDAY MAYBE they MIGHT have nuclear weapons.

   But wait.... wasn't it the NIE report that said that Hussein had biological and chemical weapons and was running flat out with a nuclear development program???  I see what they're doing.  The Whitehouse is taking using a different strategy.  On the assumption that the NIE is a bunch of incompetent dingbats, they have decided to simply assume the opposite of whatever the NIE report says, making the NSA's statement technically correct.  If the NIE report is wrong, we have no idea what Iran is doing.  They could be juggling live chickens, or painting coconuts to look like George Bush.  Obviously we need to get those bastards before they do something really dastardly.

  Oh, what a world we live in.

    Iranian PM, Ahmanidiotjan got his rocks off at the OPEC summit praising the Saudi's and getting rather excited about the drop in the dollar, claiming it is "the fall of the American empire".

A few other choice quotes:

  Hugo Chaves said that OPEC should be more political.  "OPEC should set itself up as an active political agent," he said.

  He was slapped down gently by King Abdullah, who said "Those who want OPEC to take advantage of its position are forgetting that OPEC has always acted moderately and wisely."

  But the most amusing statement was made by a Mohammad al-Sabban, a Saudi government adviser on climate change who said:  "We want to continue using fossil fuels while protecting the environment,"

Other highlights here

 

Article of Death

Summary
Iran has said they have reached 3,000 centerfuges.

Iran claims they aren't building a bomb.

It takes 3,000 centerfuges a year to enrich enough uranium for a bomb, although in a years time, they could probably build more than that.

Iran isn't listening to sanctions

Iran apparently isn't scared by threats, real or implied and says they will retaliate against anyone who tries a smackdown on them.

Isn't it just a lucky coincidence that Bush has just about a year left in office?

The only thing that could make the future brighter (yes, pun intended) is for Guliani to win the Presidential election and choose Cheney as his running mate.

I feel safe.  Don't you?

   Well, it looks as thought the Bush administration has had plans to attack Iran all this time and their protestations to the contrary were.... say it with me class..... lies.

   Honestly I don't know why they try any more.  They might as well say "We're not going to tell you what our plans are.  We might attack Iran, we might not.  That will be decided later on when we feel like it."

   A contingency plan, they are calling it.  In case economic sanctions fail.  Will someone please tell me why we're ready to go right now when the security council has set a deadline for "considering" sanctions at February 21st??

   Oh wait... I remember.  A while ago they were telling us that a super loyal and very disciplined force within the Iranian government was aiding the Shiites in Iraq.  They've been telling us on the one hand that this Quods force doesn't make a move without orders from the Iranian central government, but on the other that we have no signed documents saying that Quods force was ordered to help the Iraqi's..... but that's what they're doing, helping the Shiites shoot Americans.... we know that.  We know that because......  well I missed that part... but we do know it... I mean that Quods is helping the Shiites, not that the Iranian government ordered them... but Quods doesn't make a move without orders from the Iranian government.... but that's not what we're saying... We don't know there's a link between the Shiites in Iraq and the Iranian government.... but.... there has to be... really.. We know this.  Honest.   No fooling.  For real..

   Seems to me we've heard this before.  Iraq was making WMDs.. They resumed their research.  They're buddies with Al-Queda.  They might have even helped pull off 9/11...  We're sure of this...  We're sure of this because......  well... I missed that part too... but Iraq was aiding terrorists, we know that.

   Except we didn't know that.  The Bush administration claimed they knew that, and did their best to keep other people, people who supposedly knew more than they did from saying anything to the contrary.  They dismissed any dissenting voice as not having all the facts.  Evidence?? The evidence was there.... it was around there somewhere... we had Bush's word on that.  Show us the evidence?  Noooooo.. That's super secret.  We can't just show anyone.  They showed a few people, but when the people who got a look at this evidence said "Well... I don't know..."  They stopped showing people the evidence.  Trust us, they said.  We know what's best.

   Now that every pretense for the Iraq war has dried up, we see something remarkably similar happening to Iran.  I try to tell myself that with public opinion against them and no one even really buying the idea that Iran is helping the Iraqi rebels that Bush wouldn't be that stupid, but I said the same thing when they were gearing up for an invasion of Iraq, and now we're there.  Bush hasn't got a thing to lose.  He's the unpopular outgoing president.  Iraq has turned into a shambles.  If he can't have a positive note to go out on in Iraq, why not try for Iran?

   No... That's crazy talk........ right?