US House urges Israel to attack Iran

My post of the 20th was entitled, "I Love Being Wrong", and that's sometimes true. The other side of that coin is, sometimes I hate being right.

My post of the 21st concerned the possibility that the US was about to attack Iran.

Friday July 23rd, two days later, the US House of Representatives introduces HR 1553, which urges Israel to attack Iran, and gives blanket US support for such an attack. Here's a link to the PDF, read it for yourself, if you have a strong stomach, but it's fairly disgusting stuff.

The preamble says it all -

Expressing support for the State of Israel’s right to defend Israeli sovereignty, to protect the lives and safety of the Israeli people, and to use all means necessary to confront and eliminate nuclear threats posed by the Islamic Republic of Iran, including the use of military force if no other peaceful solution can be found within reasonable time to protect against such an immediate and existential threat to the State of Israel.

Bad enough on the face of it, because it commits us in advance to whatever the Israelis do. This is a blank check, given to a nation run by religious fanatics, who believe they are God's Chosen People.

Fairness compels me to point out that Israel has a vocal and quite active community of Progressives, who condemn Israel's more outrageous actions with greater courage and vehemence than anything the US media dare to say. Bless these people, and much respect to them. But they are not in charge. Israel is not a nation of religious fanatics, but it is a nation controlled by religious fanatics. And, yes, much the same thing could have been said of the USA during the reign of Bush the Younger. Apparently the GOP is still in the hands of religious fanatics; almost one-third of the Republicans in the House have signed on to this monstrosity.

Back to HR 1553. The dangerous part is the phrase "and to use all means necessary". This resolution, if passed, would give blanket approval in advance to a nuclear attack on Iran by the Israelis.

And the National Review chimes in, right on time, confirming our worst suspicions. Check out item #8 on the list, "Therefore, only Israel’s submarine-based nuclear weapons can assure operational success".


What order of loathsome creature would introduce such legislation, attempting to blandly approve the murder of untold millions of innocents? Texas Republican Louie Gohmert, for starts.

I'm sure McCain would love the idea; remember this little gem?





And this happens to be the week when AIPAC, (Israel's voice in the US, which is widely recognized as the most potent lobbying organization in Washington) holds its annual conference in DC. Purely by coincidence, I'm sure.

There's a video from that event on YouTube, of Senator Lindsey Graham sucking up to AIPAC, and in it he asks everyone from the Senate or Congress to stand up. They do, and you can see that over half of both Houses are present. Graham then tells the audience "On behalf of every person standing, to Israel, to AIPAC, Congress has your back!", finishing in rising shout.

These are our elected representatives, some of the most powerful men and women on earth. They decide, and millions live or die. They are supposed to be impartial. They are supposed to work for us.

How can we consider the evidence of events like this, proudly posted on YouTube, consider the contents of this HR 1553, encouraging Israel to attack Iran with nuclear weapons, and come to any conclusion other than, that they have been bribed. Bribed to consider the interests of a foreign nation over the interests of our own.

Juan Cole has an excellent article on the probable repercussions of such an action. I'd urge you to go read that on his site, but among other things, he points out that the price of oil would spike to over $140 a barrel, killing any recovery of the US economy.

My friends, this is madness. This is madness of an order fit for Caligula, not the nation that was founded to lift the lamp of Liberty unto the world.