Paul Krugman (Sunday February 11): Scary Movie 2

[Jack Rabbit]

From The New York Times via the Wealthy Frenchman
Dated Sunday February 11

Scary Movie 2
By Paul Krugman

Attacking Iran would be a catastrophic mistake, even if all the allegations now being made about Iranian actions in Iraq are true.

But it wouldn’t be the first catastrophic mistake this administration has made, and there are indications that, at the very least, a powerful faction in the administration is spoiling for a fight.

Before we get to the apparent war-mongering, let’s talk about the basics. Are there people in Iran providing aid to factions in Iraq, factions that sometimes kill Americans as well as other Iraqis? Yes, probably. But you can say the same about Saudi Arabia, which is believed to be a major source of financial support for Sunni insurgents — and Sunnis, not Iranian-backed Shiites, are still responsible for most American combat deaths.

The Bush administration, however, with its close personal and financial ties to the Saudis, has always downplayed Saudi connections to America’s enemies. Iran, on the other hand, which had no connection to 9/11, and was actually quite helpful to the United States in the months after the terrorist attack, somehow found itself linked with its bitter enemy Saddam Hussein as part of the “axis of evil.”

So the administration has always had it in for the Iranian regime. Now, let’s do an O. J. Simpson: if you were determined to start a war with Iran, how would you do it?

Read more.

[Skink]

1. No need for a vote this time.

[Ignacio Upton]

2. I've wondered why this hasn't gained traction in the MSM outside of the NYT:

Finally, you’d build up forces in the area, both to prepare for the strike and, if necessary, to provoke a casus belli. There’s precedent for the idea of provocation: in a January 2003 meeting with Prime Minster Tony Blair, The New York Times reported last year, President Bush “talked about several ways to provoke a confrontation, including a proposal to paint a United States surveillance plane in the colors of the United Nations in hopes of drawing fire.”

In the end, Mr. Bush decided that he didn’t need a confrontation to start that particular war. But war with Iran is a harder sell, so sending several aircraft carrier groups into the narrow waters of the Persian Gulf, where a Gulf of Tonkin-type incident could all too easily happen, might be just the thing.

[redqueen]

3. K&R

Krugman is always on-target.

[ccpup]

4. Actually,

I've emailed Mr. Krugman and asked if perhaps he might consider doing a piece someday on the amount of money VP Cheney has made with his Halliburton shares -- the same ones he promised he'd divest himself of in 2000 if elected VP -- since the no-bid contract was awarded for their "work" in the Iraq war. If there is War Profiteering happening -- by Cheney or anyone else (and their family) in the Administration --, I believe the American People should be aware of it and act accordingly.

[Starfury]

5. K & R