Regardless of whether or not you support another war in the Middle East, a war with Iran is already being waged. Over the past two years, eight Iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated. The CIA and Mossad, the Israeli equivalent, are clearly behind these attacks and will continue to operate within the country. Cyber warfare has also already been used to disrupt Iran’s nuclear facilities. In 2010, a computer malware worm called Stuxnet infiltrated nuclear reactors around Iran. The virus almost caused many nuclear facilities to melt down and the attack set back the program by at least two years.
The Obama administration has admitted the United States and Israel were behind the attacks. However, it seems a traditional military strike is forthcoming and almost imminent. Israel has made it clear Iran must not build a nuclear weapon. This sentiment has been so intensely emphasized that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the world at the United Nations last week that “a red line must be drawn” to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. This means going to war. The only problem is what an actual war between Iran and an international coalition would look like.
It begins with a preemptive United States and Israeli air attack against all Iranian nuclear facilities and military targets. Once this happens, every ally to the United States in the region becomes a potential Iranian target. Military bases in Afghanistan to Saudi oil refineries would all be vulernable. The Center for a New American Security, a Washington think tank devoted to war, estimates two million people could die at the end of an intense military conflict with Iran.
A war with Iran would also bring about a new high in crude oil prices. The shortages caused by the oil embargo in the 1970s would seem miniscule compared to the damage an oil crisis would cause today. An already weak global economy would be crippled by the domino effect high oil prices would bring to other staple commodities such as corn and steel
On top of that, the cost to wage a large-scale regional war in the Middle East could potentially cost hundreds of billions of dollars, which we don’t have. Luckily, United States military leaders have recognized the downfalls of war with Iran. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey confirmed in an interview with Fareed Zarkaria that “the Iranian regime is a rational actor and it’s for that reason, I think, that the current path with Iran is the most prudent path at this point.”
In other words, Iran is not stupid enough to use a nuclear bomb against Israel or anyone else for that matter. The pseudo-war the United States and Israel is already conducting against Iran is working a lot better than a military attack would. A conventional military strike would only bring about more lost treasure and blood that the United States cannot afford. It is time we keep our Israeli allies in check.
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