Scary

There's increasing evidence that the Bush administration is seriously considering a war with Iran. First came a report from Time that the Navy has ordered a task group including four mine warships to prepare for deployment by October 1st, followed by a request from the Chief of Naval Operations for a review of plans to blockade Iranian oil ports. The two reports dovetail, because the Persian Gulf and the vital Strait of Hormuz at its mouth are among the few areas where mine warfare would be at the forefront of US warmaking. (The US Navy has never concentrated on mine warfare as some other nations have.)

Today, the McClatchy newspapers report that a new battle over intelligence--reminiscent of the fictionalization that went on before the Iraq war--is brewing over Iran. The key graph:

"U.S. intelligence and counterterrorism officials say Bush political appointees and hard-liners on Capitol Hill have tried recently to portray Iran's nuclear program as more advanced than it is and to exaggerate Tehran's role in Hezbollah's attack on Israel in mid-July."

As if that weren't enough remember that there are only 40 days to the election, and the Republicans are in trouble.

(I wish I could say that not even the Bush administration would be irrational enough to push us into a war with Iran, especially now. I wish I could say that.)