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I understand what you're saying, M. I just wonder about the current viability of the air strike option.

I really have no idea how effective it could be. But I've read in a couple places that the Iranian facilities are in very deep underground bunkers and that we don't even have that great intelligence about where all the facilities are. That could be faulty, but it seems to at least be an unresolved issue.

I also think that the administration has really put itself in a bad spot vis-a-vis Iran through its Iraq policy. Not only will a more actively hostile Iran be much more capable of destabilizing the situation in Iraq, but more open antagonism between the US and Iran is really going to jeopardize whatever chance we have of nurturing the future development of a reasonably pro-US Shiite government.

So I don't really have an answer. But I think the Bush administration has put us up the creek without a paddle.

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All valid concerns, and I suspect we should be moving much faster in Iraq (faster Saddam trial; more anti-insurgent strikes; faster Iraqi security training; elections, at least, will be soon) so that in a few months it might be more stable, and we might strike Iran if needed. Issuing Iran an absolute ultimatum during a window of time (after substantial Iraqi progress is seen, yet before Iran reaches the full enrichment cycle) may be the best bet.