I think it may not be possible without something very special. There was the “Rods from God” idea maybe 2 years ago, Kinetic energy weapons released from the upper atmosphere which might penetrate the deepest bunkers, but maybe that was just a figment.
I fear it is going to come down to action by the Israelis, with whatever they can cook up…

“In our case, we get a troll with 100% lefty talking points and logic …”

I had similar suspicions. A few questions about Islam or in Arabic might have embarrassed the troll into silence. However it is usually best to ignore trolls.

Al_Batross asked:

“I take it that you have some doubts about the sincerity of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s belief in the Hidden Iman?”

I believe that Ahmadinejad is a cynical politician with little real power. I also believe that Ahmadinejad is serving as a Goebbels style minister of propaganda for the mullahs who hold actual political power in Iran. Ahmadinejad will be removed from public view after the mullahs grow tired of him or find him an embarrassment. Ahmadinejad’s media comments should be regarded as irrelevant noise. However I do believe the Iranian nuclear weapon and ballistic missile programs are genuine threats to world peace. Those programs should be terminated with preemptive military raids ***if*** it is technically possible without using nuclear weapons. However it maybe impossible to destroy the Iranian nuclear strategic weapons without using our own nuclear weapons (their uranium enrichment facilities maybe buried too deep). If that’s true then the problem is too hard for me to form a valid opinion.

With no gasoline or ability to generate electrical power, and no shipping of oil for revenue — no shipping of anything in or out by sea — Iran would become a 17th century nation again.

And oh by the way — if we REALLY wanted to prevent them from developing nukes, this approach works just fine. Takes a lot of electrical generation and distribution capacity to spin all those centrifuges and light, heat, and cool those underground labs and assembly areas.

With all due respect, in reference to Hussein Pasha; there are questions on those issues?

I think that matters are pretty well resolved on both, not in our favor; but resolved.

I submit that the unresolved questions outstanding are:

1) How bad is it going to get, in what specific ways?

2) How will we respond?

3) Will the Oath be defended, by whom, and how?

4) Successfully?

Subotai Bahadur

The question is not competence – the question is loyalty.

Low.

I’ve the same instinct about losing so large a portion of our car manufacturing, for the same security concerns, e.g., being able to switch manufacturing easiely from cars to mil. vehicles.

Similarily, I regret loses in other manufacturing or in general, production! Then, it seems obvious to me that sending your military manufacturing overseas, to just _friends, is folly, especially e.g., key Cruise Missle guidance system components.

Over…

Eggplant
I take it that you have some doubts about the sincerity of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s belief in the Hidden Iman ? I have wondered about that in the past, but I have not heard that he has ever publicly expressed doubts about the Iman or, more importantly, the imminence of his return to earth ? He appears to be believe that he is one of the Iman’s special helpers, “a nail”, and some have even suggested that he may be the Iman himself.
This might all just be an act for the humble poor of Iran, who are accepting hardships and the cost of the nuclear programme in the belief that they will receive holy jam tomorrow, but if Ahmadinejad is actually pursuing some carnal schemes of his own, why run down the oil industry and waste so many resources on the nuclear program ? And why do such a good job of convincing Israel that he intends to get a bomb, and will use it ? He has even convinced the French government of his hostile intentions. Why bother to do that ?
So, it seems to me to make more sense to believe that he is what he seems to be: a convinced Shia Twelver, who is wrecking Iran’s economy in a rush to get a nuclear weapon. He believes he can afford to wreck the economy because he is not planning to build up a strategic nuclear force, with all the support systems that would require, he is only planning for the Apocalypse, for the events necessary to initiate the appearance of the Hidden Iman, after which it will all be about divine intervention, and the boring economics and organised military stuff will just go hang.
It also seems to me that Ahmadinejad really is in the driving seat of this situation, and that unless some of the more realist Ayatollahs decide that they have had enough and dump him, then it really will come down to who shoots first, Iran or Israel ?