Iran Threatens "Pre-emptive Strikes"
One can only guess that they've got one or two ready now with that kind of talk. And they've tested the missile that can reach Tel Aviv. I'm not feeling very good about this AT ALL.
It's either:
A) Bush Inc propoganda and posturing to stir up patriotic indignation in preparation for an already scheduled attack.
B) Real
Which is worse?
I tend to think it's mostly A. It really doesn't matter though does it? In either case, only "sensitive" diplomacy will help here.
We must first reassure Iran that it is perfectly free to pursue nuclear power generation without international scrutiny. We must then make a promise to the world that we will be leaving completely by 1 year after successful elections are held in Iraq, and that we will continue to subsidize the regrowth of the new democracy for 20 years hence, without IMF restrictions or free trade requirements.
Then, we should use our intelligence assets to continue to quietly wrestle with the theocratic regime from the inside as we should have done in Iraq.
Bush will do none of these things. As Shia unrest continues to build within Iraq, the strong words of Iran at this point in time serve to fan those flames and stir the hearts of theocratic fundamentalists. The two dynamics are playing off of eachother and off of the easy vilification of the hardline US policy in a threesome of negative feedback, dogma eat dogma, apocaliptic fervor.