re: #492 Representative of Bank of Nikolai

I would trust Obama on this. I would not trust any R on this.

The big unanswered question is if the mullahs are actually insane religious fanatics, or just asshole theocrats who want to stay in power. If it’s the former, the threat that they might use any nukes is very, very real.

But the best-case scenario in the world of a bombing attack— completely destroying their nuclear infrastructure— increases the mullahs hold on Iran, and doesn’t stop them from developing a nuke, just buys some time. And they may very well be pursuing the purchase of nukes through other channels.

The plan can never depend on the enemy not having something. Because then, if they actually do have that, you’re fucked. Iran might buy a working nuclear warhead on the black market. It’s entirely within the bounds of possibility. All the talk about preventing them from developing nukes is, to me, missing the point of figuring out what we do if they do get a nuke.