Link: https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/291550/team-iran

Perhaps it’s time the Sauds start investing in nukes. The Turks and Egyptians can follow them. Throw a party, kids! Have an atomic keger.

She said that any such action by President Trump would be “pimping out” U.S. troops in aid of the interests of an unworthy supposed “Ally,” whose massive funding for the preaching of hard-line Wahabi fundamentalism around the world has encouraged terrorism.

First of all, I am sick and tired of Gabbard almost always prefacing what she says on any military or foreign policy issue by referring to “her military brothers and sisters.” I am aware that Gabbard served in the military, and served two tours in war zones.

But, does such service make her a military and foreign policy expert? I wonder?

Next, using such language as “pimped out” is just plain over the line.

Was Roosevelt “pimping out our military forces” when he sent our troops over to England and to Europe to fight the Nazi’s? Was Reagan “pimping out” our military forces when he sent them to Grenada? Are all of our forces in, say, South Korea, or Germany just “pimped out.” Are our military forces basically just mercenaries, there to do the will of the highest bidder?

Gabbard says that her harsh, over the top criticism of President Trump even considering the use of military force against Iran is the consistent with her oath as a solider and as a member fo Congress to protect and defend the Constitution.

But is it?

Last time I looked, it was the President which our Constitution give the role of Commander in Chief, who has the duty and responsibility to decide whether, when, and where to commit U.S. military forces and to what purpose, not Congresswoman Gabbard.

By the way, what is Gabbard’s great solution to this major provocation by Iran?

Why, it’s to lift the sanctions that we have imposed and gradually strengthened as a reaction to a series of hostile and aggressive actions by Iran, and for the U.S. to re-institute and to abide by the catastrophically bad Iran nuclear deal.

One commenter saw this as her desperate ploy to grab some headlines and attention, in an effort to reignite her failing bid to be the Democrat nominee, and I think he might be right.

Eastern Saudi Aabia has a large Shiite population that was over whelmed by the Saudis over a century ago. Also, C-Prince MbS is condcting a rather intense inta-family version of regime change, so there is no shortage of potential enemies on the playing field. A “hand-delived” RPG warehead could do serious damage to an oil transportation system. Iran may be playing along or be totally “innocent”, and the drones/missiles just a cover story.

What ever, this has the potential of getting real ugly.

On Point: Proxies and Proximity: Iranian Drone Attacks on Saudi Oil
by Austin Bay
September 17, 2019

Two previous Iranian-proxy drone attacks on Saudi Arabian petro-targets look suspiciously like rehearsals for the Sept. 14 attacks on the Abqaiq oil production complex and Khurais oil field.

The attacks, on May 14 and Aug. 17, 2019, would have provided Iran with intelligence regarding Saudi air surveillance operations while combat-testing the strike and guidance capabilities of its armed drones and cruise missiles. Those attacks should have alerted the Saudis to quickly improve the local air defenses of key oil shipment “chokepoints” like Abqaiq.

Apparently, they didn’t.

Does someone need to punish the Iranians for their apparent attack on Saudi oil fields?

Should the U.S. just let this attack slide, say “it’s not our business,” turn our heads away, and hope that this is the last time that the Iranian regime will do such a thing?

It would, indeed, be nice if—a la Tucker Carson—the U.S. had no reason to be involved overseas and, moreover, in multiple conflicts “over there.”

But, we happen to be in a position in the world right now—one, I’d imagine, not really actively sought (on the outside looking in, it appears that, overall, it ain’t that great, its a pain in the ass, nonstop jetting from pillar to post around the world to “consult”)—where we do have all sorts of alliances, interests, and entanglements with the outside world, and they have to be maintained, cultivated, and protected.

The days are long past when—say, beginning about the time of WWII—we could just retreat behind the vast oceans, and become “Fortress America”; we are too integrated with, “enmeshed” and “entangled” with the world and, in terms of economics, have to be, to sustain and grow our economy and society.

Moreover, at this particular moment in time, we are the only ones who possibly have the will, and have the military capabilities to do what is necessary to punish the Iranians for their actions, by either facilitating an attack by, say, the Saudis themselves, perhaps by the Israelis, or, we could just attack Iran by ourselves.

The problem here is that—given the multiple lessons of this kind of situation from history—if we don’t punish and attempt to stop Iranian aggression, now that it is so consequential and overt, it will only grow.

Iran, we might remember, is the world’s foremost sponsor of terrorism, is responsible for the deaths of many hundreds of U.S. soldiers, to judge by their constant cries of “death to America” and their threats, is our mortal enemy, and is rapidly acquiring game-changing nuclear weapons capability.

Iran, because of its coastline along the Straits of Hormuz—and including its narrowest portion, at that—is in a position to be able to attempt to shut down the Straits—in places a very narrow and constricted sea lane and choke point—which is the transit point for a good portion of the world’s commerce. (While the Straits, at their narrowest section, are 21 nautical miles wide, it appears that the actual shipping lanes, having sufficient depth for oil tankers, consist of only two channels, each only two miles wide.)

The Iranians have already attacked, or boarded and captured ships in the area.

If unpunished over their presumed attack against Saudi oil fields, would their often threatened attempt at shutting down the Straits be the Iranian’s next major escalation?

Such a major escalation would be one that could not go unchallenged and unpunished, since such a shut down of the Straits—especially if lengthy—would have a major and harmful impact on the commerce of a good portion of the world.

Why not head off such a possible escalation now, when to do so would likely cost a lot less than if the Straits were the battlefield?

Sara Cook thread:
https://mobile.twitter.com/saraecook/status/1173978840856743936

NEWS: The US has identified the exact locations in Iran from which a combination of more than 20 drones and cruise missiles was launched against the Saudi oil facilities—from southern Iran at the northern end of the Persian Gulf, per a Sr. US official to
@CBSDavidMartin

The wreckage has been moved to a facility outside Riyadh where it will be used to make what a U.S. official called “a very compelling forensic case” that Iran launched “a complex and coordinated attack.”