Panetta: It Would Take Iran One Year To Make Nuclear Bomb

[Purveyor]

NEW YORK (JTA) -- U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said it would take Iran approximately one year to build a nuclear bomb.

"The consensus is that if they decided to do it, it would probably take them about a year to be able to produce a bomb and then possibly another one to two years in order to put it on a deliverable vehicle of some sort in order to deliver that weapon,” Panetta said in an interview that aired Sunday on the CBS show “60 Minutes.”

Panetta said the U.S. would take “whatever steps are necessary” to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, calling it a “red line” for both Israelis and the United States. Asked about the possibility of U.S. military action, Panetta responded that “there are no options that are off the table.”

Meanwhile, Iran offered to extend a visit by nuclear inspectors.

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http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/01/30/3091413/panetta-it-would-take-iran-one-year-to-make-nuclear-bomb

[polly7]

1. Can you imagine how the people of Iran are feeling right now seeing all this?

I can't. They watched their neighbour, Iraq, devastated using the WMD threat as the reason. They, more than we possibly could here, know of the suffering. How do you live your life, day to day, with that kind of fear? It must be horrible.

[Bonobo]

4. Now THAT is "State-sponsored terrorism" in the truest possible sense. nt

[bananas]

16. Good grief, they watched Bush talk about nuking them,

they must feel a lot better that Obama is still talking about negotiations and economic sanctions.

[Dreamer Tatum]

2. Pfft. I can make one in 10 minutes:

3 parts potassium nitrate
2 parts sugar
1 part nuclear fissionable material


Melt all together over low heat, pour into mold.

[rhett o rick]

6. Bet your mother wouldnt let you in her kitchen getting fissionable material

all over the place.

[Dreamer Tatum]

8. She just told me not to use her good crock pot. nt

[rhett o rick]

10. And wear your TLD. nm

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. Just shining up the new bogeyman and fueling up the drones.

[Bonobo]

5. Oh and did Panetta ask Obama if it was okay to spread that umm, "information"?

Why yes, of course he did. It is unthinkable that he would not.

And Obama said "Yes, please do."

The only question is "why".

[rhett o rick]

7. Build up for the next step of this war on terror. Iraq was invaded because

they supposedly had WMD's, now we are going to invade Iran to prevent them from getting WMD. Next we will invade anyone thinking about WMD's.

[TheWraith]

11. No, we're not going to invade Iran.

Anyone who thinks we are is amazingly lacking in perspective.

[rhett o rick]

13. And I guess you would know. I take my "lacking perspective" and humbly submit.

If you would, maybe you would bless us with an explanation as to why Panetta is doing this neocon posturing?

[HopeHoops]

9. Does anyone seriously think Iran doesn't already have a few?

I mean come on. As closed as N. Korea is we still know they have about eight but they don't have the delivery systems to be a major threat beyond the general region. S. Korea and Japan are probably worried, but they can't hit our territory (although there was a "warhead" - non-nuclear - found in Alaska that supposedly originated in N. Korea about 15 years ago). Iran has the delivery system, the technology, and the fuel. I call bullshit that the US military doesn't know they have nuclear weapons.

[bananas]

14. Most people seriously think they don't

and none of the arms control analysts think they do, either.

[HopeHoops]

17. I bet our military knows otherwise.

[Thaddeus Kosciuszko]

12. Please Leon, you are making me nervous.

"The consensus is that" rational Americans don't go to bed and worry about Iranian boogey-men under their beds.

[BadgerKid]

15. In other words, a preview of the 2016 election issues. n/t