The Obama debacle continues on…
Iran has threatened to halt traffic through the strait if the West moves to toughen sanctions including an oil embargo to pressure Iran to abandon its nuclear program. The strait is the passageway for about a third of the world’s seaborne-traded oil last year, according to US Energy Department data.
“Iran has total control over the strategic waterway,” Iranian Naval Commander Admiral Habibollah Sayari told Iran’s Press TV yesterday as the Iranian navy conducted a 10-day exercise in international waters. “Closing the Strait of Hormuz is very easy for Iranian naval forces.”
“The free flow of goods and services through the Strait of Hormuz is vital to regional and global prosperity,” said Lieutenant Rebecca Rebarich, a US Navy spokeswoman in Bahrain, site of the 5th Fleet headquarters, in an e-mail. “Any disruption will not be tolerated.”
It’s obvious that the Iranians view Obama as a weak leader. Someone who likes to order predator strikes of single individual terrorists rather than making the tough, bold decisions. They understand the man will back down to Iran’s saber rattling. The rest of the western world would have something to say about the closing of the strait, that’s for sure, but with Obama’s jelly backbone it won’t be the US they will be worried about.
John Bolton:
His failure to secure an agreement with the Iraqi government is, as Bolton said, “catastrophic”. It has emboldened the Iranian government who is, and will be, a great threat to the western world.
While I agree with some that sooner or later the Iraqi’s were going to have to take control of their future it’s obvious that they were not completely ready at this point. The Iranian threat to the western world is too great to have not worked night and day to secure a diplomatic agreement on the extension of the SOFA. Honestly, we all know why this administration didn’t work too hard in securing an agreement that was palatable to both sides…his re-election.
He wanted to be able to say that he ended this war, and now the Iranians are even more emboldened, and even more a threat.
Stephen Hayes on Tuesday (skip to the 4:30 minute mark)
See author page
The Strait of Hormuz is only important IF neither the Saudis nor the UAE oil producers can get their product out.
But the UAE has already built a delivery system that ends up on the other side of the strait of Hormuz.
And the Saudis are building a pipeline to get their oil out another way.
Iran is hopping mad about their own failing economy.
They have successfully scapegoated both Israel and the USA for so long but that is a lie that their own populace sees through, thanks to the internet bypassing the gov’t controlled media.
For a long time Iran experts have seen the leadership there as more afraid of their own population than of their purported ”enemies.”
Maybe the Iranian gov’t might try spending on their own people, schools, roads, hospitals, infrastructure instead of arming and blustering for a fight that no one wants.
Just a thought.
As they are “shuddering in their boots over the U.S. respons”e, one can be assured that Iran has figured out that our no balls President is nothing but hot air! This isn’t only about the Strait of Hermuz. This is Iran spitting at the Western world in general and fomenting even more hatred towards Israel! They feel they can do what they want because they can! Chief Mullah Obama has made that very clear! Don’t think for one moment those idiots will not try to illicit a response from the U.S. Navy! Any U.S. death or response is a propaganda victory for them at home and with the majority of the radical Muslim sects. The bluster also takes attention away (they think) from their nuclear program.
No folks. Don’t be too harsh on Obama. I am sure he and the Sec of State have a dynanic strategy/plan. It likely involves solar power. The US lost an excellent opportunity when the natives became restless. We did not support their efforts and condem the atrocities committed by the Iranian government.
When the voters support a government that allows events to dictate policy, this is the results!
First Obama emboldens opportunistic states such as Iran by projecting weakness.
Then if an opportunistic state acts against our national interests, he has to respond militarily for domestic political reasons, even if he would prefer to do nothing. It’s like the bin Laden raid – Obama’s heart clearly wasn’t in it, but he ultimately allowed the raid to happen because it was politically impossible to halt it.
I am reminded, strangely, of the inexplicable statement by our incompetent ambassador April Gillespie to Saddam Hussein in 1990 – that the U.S. had no vital interests in Kuwait. It’s a general principle: show weakness and lack of resolve, get a war. It does not make anybody like you. It simply invites contempt. Did she cause the Gulf War? Who knows, but it sure didn’t help.
It’s how Europe went to war in 1939. Pacifists who swore there would never be another slaughter like World War 1, caused an even bigger war by enabling a dictator every step of the way. In Hitler’s own words, if they had stood up to him in the preceding years, he would have backed down. His success was quite surprising even to himself.
@Wm T Sherman: This was a great example. All of the time I was in Iraq, there were opportunities missed. The opportunity was eventually overcome by events. Some outcomes were good while others resulted in increased conflict. One opportunity was looking at eliminiting all Baath party members from government jobs. Our Ambassador made the decision, but he had the opportunity to do this case by case or job title by job title. He ignored the fact that people joined the Baath party to live, not because of the ideals. We lost so many excellent administrators that it set the Iraqi government back decades. Nearly all of the senior school teachers and administratrs were Baath party members and were eliminated.
The last thing the nation needs at this point is a war with Iran. It follows that we don’t need a president who’s overly inclined to start one.
@Greg:
Obama may actually be starting one, genius. By getting the other side to think that there are easy pickings, when there are not.
Where the hell were you when Obama decided to start bombing Libya? Shaking poms poms, as I recall.
Obama will give a speech and Iran will back off. Just watch. Unicorns will surround Iran and tell them to love us. He’s the greatest president ever.
-Liberalmann
(thought I save him the time)
And while he’s doing this, his EPA is changing regulations for coal burning power plants, blocking the keystone pipeline and denying permits for drilling.
Gee whiz, before long we’ll all be burning peat over fires to cook our food.
Thanks community organizer in chief.
Curt, by a clue if you haven’t found one. Obama is no different than Bush. Bush sat there sucking his johnson while the Iranians sent bombs, guns, mines, and RG members to kill American troops in Iraq.
What did Bush do about it? Nothing.
Ivan,
Watch the language.
@Wm T Sherman, #7:
Iran: active military personnel, 523,000; reserve military personnel, 1,800,000; paramilitary personnel, 1,510,000.
Probability that China will finance a U.S. war with the above: zero
Probability that Republicans will raise taxes to finance a U.S. war with the above: zero
Of course, it costs nothing to fault Obama for not doing something. Or for doing something, if it turns out at some point that he does.
Greg, you fail to understand two critical things:
First off, Iran is a direct ally with the Russian Federation in terms of Military investments, Trade, and Politics as an agitator to United States Interests in the Middle East. The Russian Federation has been hesitant and resistant towards any sanctions against Iran and would see any un-provoked attacks on Iran as an attack on an Ally and would declare war and assist Iran.
Second, the People’s Republic of China are using Iranian military personell to test their most recent urban assault carbine variants along with new body armors as the Iranians are currently harrassing the border of Iraq and is currently bothering Saudi interests with hit and run tactics. The very prospect of them attempting to shut down the Canal is very possible, as they have the warships in place with their two major allies moving to assist while we are retracting our naval presence from the reigon. China’s moving westward into Afhgan reigons and have interests in dealing with Iran in peaceful nature, as such they’ll be quick to assist the Russian Federation’s defense of Iran due to Russia being a major ally with China.
Historically speaking, Iran has been hit hard by various Sanctions to be politically manipulated by the United States since and before the brutal 1970’s uprising there. It parallells what was done to Japan in the late 1800’s and the early 1900’s by the United States via sanctions as the Japanese Empire was attempting to expand its Empire by conquering at the time American Imperial expansion interests of China, whom we were allied to. Iran is seeking to expand its Nation’s borders and has not been shy about it with agents (and in some cases special units or flat out army platoons) in Iraq, Kuwait, Egypt (Muslim Brother is funded in majority by Iranian resources), Syria, and Libya. If the United States slap weakly enforced sanctions on Iran further, and they might as well claim that the only way to liberate themselves from our meddling is to use direct violence and tactics to deny our Presence in that reigon by any means possible even if that includes cutting off fuel supplies to our Nation and to our Allies. Our own hands is making a modern day Japanese Empire, so to speak, that’s yet to commit to a modern, “Peral Harbor” (and may we pray that such a thing never happens.)
@Greg:
Dumbest thing we could do is fight Iran ground troop to ground troop.
But, lucky for us, we have drones, missiles, bunker busting bombs, sea power and air power, so we won’t have to.
Greg’s comment kind of reminded me of that scene in Under Siege where the tiny group of men with Steven S. were reminded that ”these still work,” referring to the old huge guns built into the decommissioned carrier.
@Helene:
Yeah, you can’t refute what I say so you go for the “watch your language.”
Sorry, Bush, like Clinton before him, should have bombed Iran back to the stone-age and now we have to live with their Neo-Con nightmare.
What? You realize that BUSH was the one who negotiated the “agreement” on the withdrawal of US forces.
Bolton is an ASS. Don’t quote the likes of this slug.
It’s funny, really, it is. All the US has to do is bomb Iran’s single fuel refinery and that would be the end of the the Iranian threat to the gulf-states.
But for some strange reason they won’t act on this obvious weak-point of the Iranian government.
No gas/fuel = no threat. It would also bring down the Iranian government.
@Ivan:
Damn, that’s impressive. Surely he was one of our greatest Presidents.
Clinton was a neo-con?
@Ivan: I am beginning to think that English is your second language…
Didn’t you mean, “Curt, buy a clue…”???
Your petty insults and weak minded rants kinda lose their sting when you can’t even spell correctly, Ivanski.
The stage is slowly being set for a major war in the Middle East. It will start, between Turkey and Syria. Turkey is harboring elements of the Syrian opposition who are staging raids against Assad from Turkish territory and with Turkish supplied munitions. In response, Syria is providing armaments to the Turkish Kurds as is Iran. Turkey will not tolerate this long as the Turks have been at war with the Kurds forever. Iran sees Syria as a client state, located critically with respect to the little Satan and is not about to lose Syria without a fight, which means supporting Assad. There are reports of Iranian Revolutionary Guard units serving as attack dogs on the Syrian protesters. In the meanwhile, Hezbollah, which Iran counts on to harass Israel and to threaten Israel in the event that Israel decides to go after Iran’s nukes, is broke. Not only have funds from both Iran and Syria dried up, but the chief treasurer of Hezbollah apparently embezzled nearly $2 billion. Thus, Hezbollah lacks the funds to continue to buy the loyalty of its minions and of its solders. This means that if Hezbollah is going to be counted on to support Iran and Syria militarily, they had better T up the action soon before Hezbollah completely runs out of money and loses its position in Lebanon.
In the meanwhile. the Russians have moved a carrier and a few other boats to the eastern Mediterranean to be docked in Syrian ports. Are they here to protect Assad, to threaten Israel or what? Whatever, they will inevitably become involved when things get hot. Saudi Arabia is watching all of this with considerable concern as it sees Iran as its primary enemy and knows that if Iran gets into a battle in the Straits of Hormuz or into a war between Turkey and Syria, there will inevitably be attacks on the Saudis as they will have no choice but to support the Turks. Although most of the Arab Spring countries including Egypt will be forced to stay out simply because of their own internal chaos, if Turkey starts looking like it is getting beaten, you can bet that boatloads of Egyptian soldiers will be shipped to the front and Iran will retaliate accordingly.
The Israelis are watching all of this knowing full well that the pot around them is boiling and when it boils over, they will have both threats and opportunities. I noted an item recently whereby they were reworking the fuses on the bunker buster bombs that they purchased from the US. They are also buying the F-15’s which were previously stationed in Iraq by the US. Israel has a long history of improving that plane to specs that exceed that of the US military. They see the threat coming and want to be confident that they have the redundant air power to respond when necessary.
The US (Obama) sits back and plays this ostrich-like role, pleasing to the Gregs of the world, hoping, I suppose that the resulting chaos could be ridden out without US military involvement. I noted that an American Naval officer commented yesterday that the US would not tolerate a closure of the Hormuz Straits if the Iranians so attempted. Whether that statement was approved by the big O or not is not clear although the officer has not been fired. However, if it is US policy to prevent the Iranians from closing the strait, you can be sure that a lot of kinetic activity will go on if they try, and we will take casualties.
All or most of this could have been avoided if the big O had had the wisdom to support the green movement in Iran after the election corruption of a few years back. But no, he knew that all it could take would be the big speech and he couldn’t even bring himself to do that. As he said, he was extending his hand to the Iranians. Well, they took a crap in his hand and it looks like it is still there. How many hours after the US troops left Iraq did it take for that country to descend into political anarchy, or was it a half an hour. How many hours after the US troops left Iraq did the Iranians start their moves to take over Iraq? How incredibly bungled was the management of that exit.
Keep an eye on all of this. I fear we are headed for a big one. I see the French and Germans becoming involved. I see the hunger for war driving these people who we will never understand to their inevitable climax. And, it will cost us dearly.
By the way, Obama took 5 1/2 hours to complete one round of golf and 7 hours for another. I wonder what he was doing out there as he had the course to himself, didn’t have to hunt for lost balls, and used a cart. Most duffers can complete any course in about 4 hours or less. Interesting.
Disturber
@anticsrocks
Oh heaven forbid you’ve never made a typo, you Richard cranium.
@Ivan: 😀 😆
Seems to me that in September, the iranians threatened an incursion into the Gulf of Mexico. IF we had a President with some balls, the outcome of such a move would undoubtedly resulted in a sound defeat of the iranian navy.
This video addressed that threatened action but could also be applied to the current situation. Just substitute the Strait of Hormuz for the Gulf of Mexico.
http://www.popmodal.com/video/9682/Iranian-Navy
@Rides A Pale Horse: I was going to comment on the video at the link you provided, but I didn’t want to register. So I shall comment here.
ROFLMAO!!! Go USA!! Great video, Rides.
In 2012, when we get a Republican in the WH, Iran will change their tune.
One thing to never rule out – obama will start a war with Iran if it helps him to get re-elected; it’s just who he is, a calculating opportunist of the worst kind. He doesn’t have to do sh*t, our troops have to, while he doesn’t give a fly about them, although right now he and wookie attempt to court them also because of his re-election.
Ivan,
I was not refuting any of your comments. I was not commenting on your comments. I was asking you to watch your language and to be more respectful of others.
@anticsrocks:
Thanks for your comment! Glad you enjoyed the video. It’s time that this country once again becomes the power that we have worked so hard to be. It’s not such a bad thing that we are feared more than loved. Getting the world to love us hasn’t really gotten us anywhere has it? We are hated just as much as ever. No matter what we do, how much we help others, we’re going to be vilified anyway so…………..
Maybe it’s time we kicked some ass and take some names again.
Jus’ sayin’
Rides A Pale Horse
how come you’re not a CANDIDATE, THE NEW TREND WHICH AMERICANS WOULD REALY DIGG,
that is no talk just your vidual images would say enough of your profile, but how would
you work it when they the MEDIA WANT TO SHOW THE CANDIDATES NAKED,
AS THEY DID TO THE OTHERS, I know you’d find some way.
BYE
Rides A Pale Horse
I had another bright idea,
I can just visualize your messages on FOREIGN AFFAIRS, YOU WOULD BE THE BEST on it AT LETTING your messages across without a doubt,
just thinking of how vast your potential goes
bye, I might have more ideas coming on it.
Rides A Pale Horse
you should consider getting in the race, YOU would become who they call the surprise CANDIDATE ,
nobody expected in their wildest dreams, and you would not have to say one word.
bye
@Rides A Pale Horse: Agree, agree. I tell my teenagers this all the time, I’m not here to be popular, this is my house, and you will respect me because I have earned that respect. I would much rather America be respected and feared than liked and loved. Once you get the respect, the rest comes from those who admire you. The others that don’t, well they wouldn’t like or love us no matter what we do, so why be weak?
@ilovebeeswarzone:
You’re just FULL of ideas aren’t you? 🙂
I would possibly be the worst candidate for any office. I’m vulgar, brash, non-PC, I calls ’em as I sees ’em and don’t give a damn about what people think of me. That is NOT the kind of person that attains public office. I wouldn’t last 10 minutes on the campaign trail before people would be throwing tomatos and whatever they could get their hands on. Besides, I’m too old for that shit. I’m cranky, crotchety, opinionated and have a very low tolerance for stupidity and I’m not about to change.
I’ll just keep Photoshopping and creating a video now and then to express myself. That is my contribution to the effort. Beyond that, I, like many others here and in the country in general, just want to be left alone. I don’t need the government to tell me what I like and what I don’t like, they do a good enough job of getting me to form my own opinions of what they are doing that I like and don’t like and so far, I don’t like much.
But thanks for your support, I always appreciate your comments but I’m not the guy.
@anticsrocks:
Hear hear!!!
We could be ideological twins.
Rides A Pale Horse
any one can link that speech to my friend RICK PERRY FOR ME,
that’s the kind of speech AMERICA IS WAITING FOR,
and he’s the only one to repeat it as good.
too bad, you would have done just fine,
BYE
@Rides A Pale Horse: You and I are probably too much like wilting flowers to serve public office…
Okay, I just had to get that out of my system! lol
Rides, like Edmund Burke, (called the father of conservatism) said, “No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.” So the contributions you and I, and others of our ilk make are our way of aiding the cause of conservatism that we both believe to be what America needs to be great again.
Rides A Pale Horse
now I know CURT would like to vote for you,
Rides A Pale Horse
and AMERICANS would have loved your videos on FOREIGN AFFAIRS LIKE THIS ONE.
YOU SURE WOULD HAVE ENTERTAINED THEM BY MAKE BELIEVE YOU’RE AN ALIEN COMING TO BECOME THEIR PRESIDENT, that’s what they need, an image of their dream, they would go for anything unreal,
THEY WOULD HAVE GONE WILD FOR YOU,
BYE
@anticsrocks:
Yeah, I’m a regular shrinking violet 🙂
I fly my flag proudly, I carry a gun, I love Jesus, I love this country and I will do anything I can short of running for office to do my part to set this country on the path to restoration.
I also have twin 12 year old nephews that I have taught to shoot, un-indoctrinating them from their “education”, teaching them about our history, the Constitution, the Declaration and our founding fathers, NONE of which they are getting in school. THAT is almost a full time job in itself. But I’m glad to do it because we OWE it to our young people to pass on what we have learned. It’s our duty as the older generation to instill in them the ideas of duty, honor, country and responsibility. They are constantly at odds with their teachers as they are learning that what they are being “taught” is not necessarily what the reality is. Consequently, I’ve been told by their parents that if they keep arguing with their teachers, presenting them with FACTS and refuting their arguments, I’m the one who is going to the parent-teacher conferences to explain why they are so contrary…..:)
I think that working with them, the other little graphics that I do to express myself and being able to come to places like Flopping Aces and express my opinions and rants is the best way for me to do my part to advance the cause of conservatism. We have a tough road ahead of us but people like you and I and the readers of F.A. and other conservative sites can and WILL be able to get us back to what the founding fathers envisioned.
It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
@ilovebeeswarzone:
Bees, we already HAVE an alien in the Whitehouse and what he’s doing to this country is as unreal as it gets. What we the people need is someone who is REAL, not some unknown, undocumented commodity elevated to god-like status by a complicit press.
Unfortunately, I don’t see much along the lines of a true conservative in this current group of candidates but I will support whoever is nominated. We may have to hold our noses and pull the lever for the “lesser of evils” but we do need to get this out of control government back to reality.
I believe that it is most important that we retain and expand our majority in the House and wrest control of the Senate in this next election. Should O’Zero, by some quirk of fate be re-elected, THAT is the only way we will have any control of our destiny.
God help us if he is re-elected and we don’t.
Rides A Pale Horse
yes another fine speech,
I know you’re gifts more than you ,
changing subject; the scientist discover there is many humans still carrying the genetic evidence of cross breeding with archaic humans, such as the mysrerious asians DENISOVANS AND NEERDANTAL ,IS IN IT FUN TO WANDER IS IT ME?
I can just see you thinking of an image of it,
BYE
Bees, some of us are much too “coarse” to run for public office. Some liberal would call us racist and we would tell them where to go and what to do with their accusations. The public at large wouldn’t like that.
RAPH, I fear that if obama is re-elected we will still see destruction of America continue thru regulatory fiat. Obama has made clear he will continue his marxist plans no matter what. If we take the Senate I hope the GOP has the balls to prosecute Holder and other dem criminals.
I can’t be too hopeful as too many times the GOP has gone soft on the dems rather then do what is right and proper.
Hard Right
you bring a good argument showing the PROOFof the tolerance of the CONSERVATIVES,
because the DEMOCRATS RHETORIC always paint the CONSERVATIVES contrary to what they represent, and even emphasize THE behavior as over rigorous , profiling them as dangerous even,
just to prevent defection from their followers they do it with intent which is nefarious,
@anticsrocks:
HAHAHAHA! I see someone has been hitting the sauce a little early today!
@Ivan: Your grasp of history seems to be weak, Ivanski. Look back at Inauguration Day, 1981 and after the realization hits you, then you might want to take a nip or two from that sauce yourself.
It is almost laughable how easy you make things, Ivan.
@Hard Right:
Then it is of utmost importance that we all work harder to see that the usurper in chief is unemployed in 2012. I agree that he would, by fiat, attempt to bypass the Constitution but being the narcissist that he is, he would eventually try to do something so dastardly that it would be impossible to ignore, forcing Congress to act on his removal and should we control Congress, that, with intense pressure from We The People, could see that actually happen.
Hope spring eternal.
Rides A Pale Horse
hi,
there is many ways to skin a cat,
lets find them all, we’ll use them all at once
bye
http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-and-strategy/201861-iran-bluffing-with-threat-to-block-oil-passageway-analysts-say
http://www.freep.com/article/20120101/NEWS07/201010551/Hit-with-sanctions-Iran-seeks-to-restart-nuclear-talks
Happy New Year.
Looks like Iran is starting to be concerned about the sanctions:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/31/iran-nuclear-weapons-coun_n_1177554.html
Let’s not send any more trusting GIs to their deaths.
I like Reagan’s policy that he had with both the Democrats (at least after they lied about budget cuts in exchange for tax hikes), and the Soviet Union – Trust But Verify. That is what we need to do with Iran, just because it appears they are backing off, I wouldn’t let my guard down.