Question of the day: how big a price will we pay if we bomb Iran?

[Demeter]

http://www.lastchancedemocracycafe.com/?p=1010

According to the Sunday Times of London, the Pentagon has drawn up plans “for massive airstrikes against 1,200 targets in Iran, designed to annihilate the Iranians’ military capability in three days.” Well now, isn’t that special.

There’s still part of me that finds it hard to believe Bush will actually pull the trigger. With our military already badly overextended, to gratuitously start yet another war against a dangerous foe would be nothing short of insane. It’s certainly possible Bush is just bluffing. But then, this is Bush we’re talking about.

So how big a disaster would such an attack turn out to be for this country? My guess, based on reading what a variety of experts have to say, is that the initial attack would likely be very successful, devastating Iran’s military assets. Our pilots would probably very quickly gain complete air dominance, free to bomb at will and greatly restricting Iran’s ability to strike back directly.

Who knows? Maybe we’d be honored with another “Mission Accomplished” moment (perhaps Bush could parachute in this time).

But soon enough, just like in Iraq — only worse — everything would go to hell. Contrary to the neoconservative’s dreams, the Islamic extremists in charge wouldn’t be overthrown — they’d be strengthened due to outrage against the United States. Attacks would increase against our troops in Iraq; Afghanistan would likely fall into complete anarchy. Terrorist attacks against US interests would increase across the globe. Meanwhile, oil prices would go through the ceiling, with the global economy taking a nosedive.

And George W. Bush and the neocons, having never imagined that things might not work out perfectly, wouldn’t have a clue what to do about it.

[patrioticintellect]

1. How big a price?

In the realm of foreign policy, since it fits into the Bush doctrine to preemptively strike in Iran, we expand on previous successes (Iraq and Afghanistan are successes to the Bush administration and will go down in history like that unless the people speak up).

In terms of the cost to the American people, it means inevitably more soldiers will die in Iraq because certainly if we do not pull out Iran will target them if we do not put troops on the ground in Iran. The bunkers we blow up could dangerously affect the lands of Iran and negatively affect people in the region. Our imperialistic foreign policy continued will further erode relationships that we need to strengthen instead of put further strain upon. This means, the American people will again be viewed with disdain and met with anger as they watch us allow our leaders to invade another country. Iran strikes will break the country and lead to America stealing its oil like America is doing in Iraq. Iraqis and Iranians could become more heavily recruited by terrorist organizations or as I like to call them, freedom fighters.

You've never seen blood for oil like you will in Iran if we do in fact strike. American troops will be pushed even more past the limit than they have been in Iraq. And a draft...well, maybe. It depends on how badly our leaders want Iran's oil.

[presspeal]

2. I'm surprised, but I actually disagree with you on a couple points

1-The worst part of the 'fallout' wouldn't be the overworked military, the terrorist surge(although it be very large), the oil prices, etc... Do you think that there would be a single nation anywhere(even England) that would still aline its self with the U.S.
2-* never imaged things working out, their don't care if any of it works! Their getting what they want right now$$$$$$$and that why their willing to do any thing they can to kept it going as long as they can.:puke:

[Douglas Carpenter]

3. This from Chris Hedges on the Iranian response:

"It is not hard to imagine what will happen. Iranian Shabab-3 and Shabab-4 missiles, which cannot reach the United States, will be launched at Israel, as well as American military bases and the Green Zone in Baghdad. Expect massive American casualties, especially in Iraq, where Iranian agents and their Iraqi allies will be able to call in precise coordinates. The Strait of Hormuz, which is the corridor for 20 percent of the world’s oil supply, will be shut down. Chinese-supplied C-801 and C-802 anti-shipping missiles, mines and coastal artillery will target U.S. shipping, along with Saudi oil production and oil export centers. Oil prices will skyrocket to well over $4 a gallon. The dollar will tumble against the euro. Hezbollah forces in southern Lebanon, interpreting the war as an attack on all Shiites, will fire rockets into northern Israel. Israel, already struck by missiles from Tehran, will begin retaliatory raids on Lebanon and Iran. Pakistan, with a huge Shiite minority, will reach greater levels of instability. The unrest could result in the overthrow of the weakened American ally President Pervez Musharraf and usher into power Islamic radicals. Pakistan could become the first radical Islamic state to possess a nuclear weapon. The neat little war with Iran, which few Democrats oppose, has the potential to ignite a regional inferno."

"Chris Hedges, a Pulitzer prize-winning reporter, was the Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times. He spent seven years in the Middle East and reported frequently from Iran"

link to full article: http://www.alternet.org/audits/61521/?page=2

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"I think of war with Iran as the ending of America's present role in the world. Iraq may have been a preview of that, but it's still redeemable if we get out fast. In a war with Iran, we'll get dragged down for 20 or 30 years. The world will condemn us. We will lose our position in the world."

Zbigniew Brzezinski, Vanity Fair, 2006.

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[NI4NI]

4. Maybe more Iraqi Shias joining militias against our troops

and more foreign fighters into Iraq to join Jihad.
Bush/Cheney have an uncanny knack for creating more "terrorists".

[Demeter]

5. I'm Thinking Environmental Apocalypse, Myself

And the Fundies won't be Raptured, either. If they are lucky, they will be ruptured. The survivors will be the worst off.

[Jim__]

6. Unfortunately, Iran would probably pay a higher price than we would.

I say, unfortunately, because if we launch an unprovoked attack on Iran, we no longer deserve to exist as a country; but we will probably continue to exist for a while. If they launch the type of attack that has been described recently, many Iranians, maybe millions, will be killed in the attack.