Netanyahu must have dirt on many a U.S. politician, and/or fanboy zealots like Huckabee who believe they're supposed to hasten the "rapture." Netanyahu sounds more like the devil after reading your (as always) excellent, thoughtful article!
"fanboy zealots like Huckabee who believe they're supposed to hasten the "rapture.""
Did you see the Ted Cruz/Tucker Carlson interview here he (completely incorrectly) says God commands Christians to support the modern state of Israel? Absolutely wild.
I would give almost anything to understand the level of fanatical, "anything goes" support Israel enjoys. It's not even just politicians who have been bought off, it's regular people, many of my readers even. Absolutely bizarre.
Ted needs to be careful invoking the Old Testament in this way. People might get curious and read it, and encounter verses that are not very flattering to his cause.
1. Israel has demonstrated that their intelligence capabilities are far beyond anything the US has or has ever had. The HAMAS attack being the exception. Their attacks on Hezbollah and now Iran have shown that the Mossad is well beyond the CIA or anything the US has in understanding what Iran is really doing.
2. You can't blame Netanyahu for being conservative in his predictions of how long it would take Iran to develop one or more nuclear weapons. It's an existential threat to Israel. In addition, you don't know everything the Mossad has done to continue to undermine Iran's nuclear capabilities. The Stuxnet example is a case in point.
Bottom line, your article is laced with bias against Israel and Netanyahu to support a conclusion you were wanting.
I went to Israel a number of times before 9/11. Those trips convinced me that the US security at airports was just a mirage. Nothing meaningful happening. The US suffers from leading with arrogance because politicians get bonus points from huffing and puffing. 9/11 proved that arrogance was unfounded. The US could have adopted Israel security precautions long before 9/11. Then 9/11 would not have happened.
In the end, I trust Israeli intelligence much more than any US intelligence agency. Israel has done the US and the world a favor by undermining Iran's nuclear objectives for years. They no longer want to just undermine it, they want it permanently eliminated. Hard to blame them given the Iranian regime publically states their goal is the destruction of Israel.
"Israel has demonstrated that their intelligence capabilities are far beyond anything the US has or has ever had."
1. Oh really? That's an interesting claim. What evidence are you basing it on? Or, do you, as usual, not have any? Their ability to infiltrate the supply chain of pagers in Lebanon, while flashy, does not indicate superior intelligence capabilities. Not least because there's no reason to believe the US couldn't do the same.
And you can't just put their biggest recent intelligence failure aside. How do you explain how this fantastic intelligence agency allowed a group of men on paragliders to cross over from the territory Israel already has under military blockade and kill civilians?
2. Being repeatedly wrong for 33 years is not "being conservative." Stuxnet affected around 10% of Iranian centrifuges if memory serves. That doesn't explain how Netanyahu was so wrong so consistently.
3. Where is the bias? I'm stating facts about what Netanyahu has said. You can go and verify it all for yourself. Seems like you're the one who's chasing a predetermined conclusion here.
4. Why are you talking about airports? Are you okay?
5. Again, as the article states, experts in the field, including Israeli experts, believe that these strikes will only delay Iran's nuclear program by a few months at best and may well accelerate it. They do not have the capabilities to "permanently eliminate it." To even have a chance at that they would need to drag the US into the war too, with all the potential catastrophes that brings.
6. Iran is at least three years away from a nuke according to every intelligence agency and inspector who has provided any evidence. That's why I, and many others, are arguing that diplomacy is a better option than a potential world war.
As to point 1, the logical fallacy that "there is no evidence that (fill in the blank) could not do (fill in the blank) is such an obvious logical fallacy, that it is actually LISTED in every top 5 list of logical fallacies.
But there is plenty of evidence that makes it laughable that the bureaucratic, lumbering, inward looking, risk averse CIA couldn't come close to pulling off the cell phone thing, much less the beeper follow up. At leas for those who don't get their views of the CIA from movies.
“ As to point 1, the logical fallacy that "there is no evidence that (fill in the blank) could not do (fill in the blank) is such an obvious logical fallacy”
What are you talking about?! I’m not asking him to prove a negative, I’m asking him to support the statement that Israeli intelligence capabilities are “far beyond anything the US has or has ever had.” This kind of extraordinary claim should be based on some evidence, right?
Or at the very least a recognition of the unbelievable degree of unknown unknowns involved in making such a statement as if it’s fact rather than a claim pulled out of thin air.
If there’s “plenty of evidence” why are you complaining about me asking for it and why haven’t you presented any?
Because given that Israeli intelligence was quite recently guilty of a truly spectacular security failure, at many levels, I think the question is extremely reasonable.
Present facts, get answered by pure emotion. Bias? WHAT bias? By the way, Israel's failure on October 7th showed several things: A: they made a mistake by being over reliant on tech. Hamas tactics were designed to overcome that. Lesson learned? Be more hands on---which Steve will bitch about. B: The extent of the Gazan support for Hamas and such tactics that despite the traffic and commerce beginning between Israel and Gaza, such a mobilization was carried out WITHOUT ONE TIPSTER picking up the phone.
Just like with Iraq, nobody wants to provide any kind of coherent motive for Iran nuking Israel, knowing their entire nation would be obliterated within seconds in retaliation. It makes no sense. Nuking the U.S. makes even less sense.
"So the JCPOA was vital to keep Iran from building the nuclear weapon they weren't building anyway?"
Where on earth are you getting this from? You realise you could just spend five seconds actually reading what the JCPOA did and why it existed instead of asking snarky rhetorical questions, right?
The JCPOA incentivised Iran to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. With Iran ostracised from the international community and with Israel already having nuclear weapons and refusing to join the NPT or allow inspections, Iran had absolutely no motivation not to develop a nuke of their own.
The JCPOA changed that. It wasn't perfect, if Trump had renegotiated the deal, that might have been a good thing, but no, in typical fashion, he pulled out of it without any plan B, simply assuming that he could "make a deal" because he's Trump, and failing entirely to do so because he's Trump.
But Iran is still years away from having a nuke. And was in active negotiations with the US when Israel decided to attack.
Oh, is that what your personal briefing at MI-6 told you? Years? How many years? 1.5 or 20? What "innocent people" would the US bomb into oblivion? Oh, right nuclear scientist working on the Bomb and the military guarding them. And my comment above is a fair inference and summary from your commentary, which mocks the attempt of Iran to develop a bomb, at the same time as you hold up the JCPOA as important. It's logic. And by the way, enrichment, which Iran has always maintained is off the table as going to zero, only has ONE purpose.
Why do you feel the need to be such a snarky jackass? Why can’t you just talk like a normal person? If you’re not sure about a source for a claim I’ve made, and I haven’t already provided you with a link to it in the article (maybe you didn’t read this one before commenting either), you can just ask.
And I’m not mocking Iranian attempts to make a bomb. Obviously that should be a concern to everyone. But the JCPOA was the only thing that motivated Iran to curtail its nuclear program. So getting rid of it without an alternative seems like a big deal, no?
How many wars has America chosen to involve itself in that were not based upon lies?
That is an excellent question.
Netanyahu must have dirt on many a U.S. politician, and/or fanboy zealots like Huckabee who believe they're supposed to hasten the "rapture." Netanyahu sounds more like the devil after reading your (as always) excellent, thoughtful article!
"fanboy zealots like Huckabee who believe they're supposed to hasten the "rapture.""
Did you see the Ted Cruz/Tucker Carlson interview here he (completely incorrectly) says God commands Christians to support the modern state of Israel? Absolutely wild.
I would give almost anything to understand the level of fanatical, "anything goes" support Israel enjoys. It's not even just politicians who have been bought off, it's regular people, many of my readers even. Absolutely bizarre.
Ted needs to be careful invoking the Old Testament in this way. People might get curious and read it, and encounter verses that are not very flattering to his cause.
Two comments here:
1. Israel has demonstrated that their intelligence capabilities are far beyond anything the US has or has ever had. The HAMAS attack being the exception. Their attacks on Hezbollah and now Iran have shown that the Mossad is well beyond the CIA or anything the US has in understanding what Iran is really doing.
2. You can't blame Netanyahu for being conservative in his predictions of how long it would take Iran to develop one or more nuclear weapons. It's an existential threat to Israel. In addition, you don't know everything the Mossad has done to continue to undermine Iran's nuclear capabilities. The Stuxnet example is a case in point.
Bottom line, your article is laced with bias against Israel and Netanyahu to support a conclusion you were wanting.
I went to Israel a number of times before 9/11. Those trips convinced me that the US security at airports was just a mirage. Nothing meaningful happening. The US suffers from leading with arrogance because politicians get bonus points from huffing and puffing. 9/11 proved that arrogance was unfounded. The US could have adopted Israel security precautions long before 9/11. Then 9/11 would not have happened.
In the end, I trust Israeli intelligence much more than any US intelligence agency. Israel has done the US and the world a favor by undermining Iran's nuclear objectives for years. They no longer want to just undermine it, they want it permanently eliminated. Hard to blame them given the Iranian regime publically states their goal is the destruction of Israel.
"Israel has demonstrated that their intelligence capabilities are far beyond anything the US has or has ever had."
1. Oh really? That's an interesting claim. What evidence are you basing it on? Or, do you, as usual, not have any? Their ability to infiltrate the supply chain of pagers in Lebanon, while flashy, does not indicate superior intelligence capabilities. Not least because there's no reason to believe the US couldn't do the same.
And you can't just put their biggest recent intelligence failure aside. How do you explain how this fantastic intelligence agency allowed a group of men on paragliders to cross over from the territory Israel already has under military blockade and kill civilians?
2. Being repeatedly wrong for 33 years is not "being conservative." Stuxnet affected around 10% of Iranian centrifuges if memory serves. That doesn't explain how Netanyahu was so wrong so consistently.
3. Where is the bias? I'm stating facts about what Netanyahu has said. You can go and verify it all for yourself. Seems like you're the one who's chasing a predetermined conclusion here.
4. Why are you talking about airports? Are you okay?
5. Again, as the article states, experts in the field, including Israeli experts, believe that these strikes will only delay Iran's nuclear program by a few months at best and may well accelerate it. They do not have the capabilities to "permanently eliminate it." To even have a chance at that they would need to drag the US into the war too, with all the potential catastrophes that brings.
6. Iran is at least three years away from a nuke according to every intelligence agency and inspector who has provided any evidence. That's why I, and many others, are arguing that diplomacy is a better option than a potential world war.
Simple response: But what if Netanyahu is right this time?
As to point 1, the logical fallacy that "there is no evidence that (fill in the blank) could not do (fill in the blank) is such an obvious logical fallacy, that it is actually LISTED in every top 5 list of logical fallacies.
But there is plenty of evidence that makes it laughable that the bureaucratic, lumbering, inward looking, risk averse CIA couldn't come close to pulling off the cell phone thing, much less the beeper follow up. At leas for those who don't get their views of the CIA from movies.
“ As to point 1, the logical fallacy that "there is no evidence that (fill in the blank) could not do (fill in the blank) is such an obvious logical fallacy”
What are you talking about?! I’m not asking him to prove a negative, I’m asking him to support the statement that Israeli intelligence capabilities are “far beyond anything the US has or has ever had.” This kind of extraordinary claim should be based on some evidence, right?
Or at the very least a recognition of the unbelievable degree of unknown unknowns involved in making such a statement as if it’s fact rather than a claim pulled out of thin air.
If there’s “plenty of evidence” why are you complaining about me asking for it and why haven’t you presented any?
Because given that Israeli intelligence was quite recently guilty of a truly spectacular security failure, at many levels, I think the question is extremely reasonable.
Present facts, get answered by pure emotion. Bias? WHAT bias? By the way, Israel's failure on October 7th showed several things: A: they made a mistake by being over reliant on tech. Hamas tactics were designed to overcome that. Lesson learned? Be more hands on---which Steve will bitch about. B: The extent of the Gazan support for Hamas and such tactics that despite the traffic and commerce beginning between Israel and Gaza, such a mobilization was carried out WITHOUT ONE TIPSTER picking up the phone.
It’s quite something to see you accusing others of emotional responses David.
Just like with Iraq, nobody wants to provide any kind of coherent motive for Iran nuking Israel, knowing their entire nation would be obliterated within seconds in retaliation. It makes no sense. Nuking the U.S. makes even less sense.
So the JCPOA was vital to keep Iran from building the nuclear weapon they weren't building anyway? Gotcha.
"So the JCPOA was vital to keep Iran from building the nuclear weapon they weren't building anyway?"
Where on earth are you getting this from? You realise you could just spend five seconds actually reading what the JCPOA did and why it existed instead of asking snarky rhetorical questions, right?
The JCPOA incentivised Iran to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. With Iran ostracised from the international community and with Israel already having nuclear weapons and refusing to join the NPT or allow inspections, Iran had absolutely no motivation not to develop a nuke of their own.
The JCPOA changed that. It wasn't perfect, if Trump had renegotiated the deal, that might have been a good thing, but no, in typical fashion, he pulled out of it without any plan B, simply assuming that he could "make a deal" because he's Trump, and failing entirely to do so because he's Trump.
But Iran is still years away from having a nuke. And was in active negotiations with the US when Israel decided to attack.
Oh, is that what your personal briefing at MI-6 told you? Years? How many years? 1.5 or 20? What "innocent people" would the US bomb into oblivion? Oh, right nuclear scientist working on the Bomb and the military guarding them. And my comment above is a fair inference and summary from your commentary, which mocks the attempt of Iran to develop a bomb, at the same time as you hold up the JCPOA as important. It's logic. And by the way, enrichment, which Iran has always maintained is off the table as going to zero, only has ONE purpose.
No, for the third time, it’s what members of the Israeli military told me. Along with US intelligence (https://edition.cnn.com/2025/06/17/politics/israel-iran-nuclear-bomb-us-intelligence-years-away)
Why do you feel the need to be such a snarky jackass? Why can’t you just talk like a normal person? If you’re not sure about a source for a claim I’ve made, and I haven’t already provided you with a link to it in the article (maybe you didn’t read this one before commenting either), you can just ask.
And I’m not mocking Iranian attempts to make a bomb. Obviously that should be a concern to everyone. But the JCPOA was the only thing that motivated Iran to curtail its nuclear program. So getting rid of it without an alternative seems like a big deal, no?