Well, it looks like Dick Cheney has taken another step toward shifting the Overton Window for attacking Iran. Before W can realistically issue the "GO" order of his dreams, he needs to make the idea of starting yet another war of aggression "thinkable" through things like this:
US warns Iran on Iraq 'meddling'
BBC News
January 14, 2007
US Vice President Dick Cheney has warned Iran not to interfere in Iraq.
...
Washington has often accused Iran, or factions within the Iranian government, of aiding Shia groups in Iraq militarily and politically, but has offered little proof of Tehran's alleged activities.
President George W Bush on Wednesday warned that the US would take a tough stance towards Iran and Syria, which he accused of destabilising Iraq.
Mr Cheney told Fox News that Iran was "fishing in troubled waters" by aiding attacks on US forces and backing Shia militias involved in sectarian violence.
Right now, such a course of action remains outside the range of what the US public thinks necessary or doable. We've got to keep it there. (more below)
W and his Bush League minions went into his Presidency the same way they went into Iraq: with ideological dreams and no thought of repercussions or resistance. Then came the midterm elections.
Suddenly, Bush found himself being smacked in the face with the 600lb dead fish of reality. The magic of his "9/11" spell was no longer stunning his opponents into silence and the press into servile stenography. Instead, he was being questioned. Worse, folks were noticing that his promises weren't matched with actions - and asking him why he hadn't accomplished anything. He almost certainly recalls the ultimate fate of "Kenny Boy" Lay - whose management style so closely matched W's own Cheerleader/Tinkerbell mentality (keep chanting for victory and you'll succeed, even when the football team's down 500 - 0 and there's only 2 minutes left on the clock).
Now, Bush suddenly realizes that cheerleading isn't enough - there are only 2 minutes remaining in this football game, and he's going to be judged on the results of his actions. He is therefore desperate to accomplish something, anything, that he can bring up in the "accomplishment" side of his Administration's ledger. This means attacking Iran's nuclear facilities - probably by late March, the start of war season in the Gulf.
He knows that there's no way either the Congress or the UN will authorize such an action. So, he's trying to provoke the Iranians into doing something that he can "defend" against through a stream of actions like this one:
US blacklists Iranian state bank
BBC News
January 9, 2007
The United States has blacklisted one of Iran's largest banks, accusing it of a key role in financing the development of weapons of mass destruction.
A US treasury official said state-owned Bank Sepah was the "financial lynchpin" in Iran's missile procurement network.
The move freezes its assets in the US and bars any US companies or citizens from doing business with the bank.
However, Bush is no fool - even though he plays one so well on TV. Just as with his Social Security Destruction er, I mean reform plans, he'll postpone his Iran airwar implementation dreams if the public screams enough.
That means us. Write your Congresscritter - write both Senators - and keep on writing on this subject as well as all the other disasters we must stop the Bush League from inflicting on this country and the world.