Why Stop There?

US To Make More Good Jihadis Out Of Bad Ones?

Aren't we in a GWOT? Is cutting off funds enough? Not hardly. Just look at the UN-Iraq scandal. The sanctions worked great didn't they? Again, not hardly.

Like Wake Up America says, "IT IS ABOUT TIME!" However, to me, this action is a baby's First Step. It isn't enough and we have already, in many instances across the globe, have "waited for the right moment" to do the right thing out of fear of the much dreaded Global Permission Network and the Political Correctness Quagmire/Nonsense.

Does anyone remember this?



From WaPo: Iranian Unit to Be Labeled 'Terrorist'

The United States has decided to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, the country's 125,000-strong elite military branch, as a "specially designated global terrorist," according to U.S. officials, a move that allows Washington to target the group's business operations and finances.

I often wonder what takes some folks so long to make the obvious decisions. It has been shown time and time again that the Iranians are arming both the AQ in Afghanistan and Iraq and the Taliban.

If it were me, I wouldn't stop at "business operations and finance". Five or six strategically placed MOABS over and above taking their funds is an appropriate action. Their explosives and ammunition has been used against military members of the United States and that in and of itself is an act of war and the United States hasn't done anything to Iran since Jimmy Carter.

Iran is holding Americans hostage...again...and what are we doing about it? The same as Jimmy Carter and England? Give me a break.

I do believe this is another incident of that Compassionate Conservative thing GWB prattles on about. Sorry President Bush. This action is really no action at all in my book. Perhaps this is a First Step but the initial step isn't quite...well...the stride is not what it could be.

Cutting off their funds is one thing. Destroying the CURRENT and IN USE arsenal is another. Are we going to wait until their arsenal is used up and THEN go "in" after the fact? How many of our military members are we going to "wait and see with"?

Sorry. I cannot buy into this unless there is an immediate "show of force" to convince them we are serious. We have pussy-footed with the enemy for far too long.

The designation of the Revolutionary Guard will be made under Executive Order 13224, which President Bush signed two weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to obstruct terrorist funding. It authorizes the United States to identify individuals, businesses, charities and extremist groups engaged in terrorist activities. The Revolutionary Guard would be the first national military branch included on the list, U.S. officials said -- a highly unusual move because it is part of a government, rather than a typical non-state terrorist organization.

A highly unusual move? Under "normal" circumstances...perhaps. We are not dealing with a "normal" country. The Iranian government and "religious leaders" is a group of people running a country's ruling elite, made up of and controlled by terrorists. Period.

The Revolutionary Guard Corps -- with its own navy, air force, ground forces and special forces units -- is a rival to Iran's conventional troops. Its naval forces abducted 15 British sailors and marines this spring, sparking an international crisis, and its special forces armed Lebanon's Hezbollah with missiles used against Israel in the 2006 war. The corps also plays a key role in Iran's military industries, including the attempted acquisition of nuclear weapons and surface-to-surface missiles, according to Anthony H. Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Having two separate and rival military units internal of one country is not "normal" by any stretch of the imagination. "Normal" chats with such rival governing bodies within one country is not possible. Are we to repeat in Iran the errors in Iraq?

Others with similar and opposing opinions below.

Robin Wright / Washington Post:

Iranian Unit to Be Labeled 'Terrorist' — U.S. Moving Against Revolutionary Guard — The United States has decided to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, the country's 125,000-strong elite military branch, as a "specially designated global terrorist," according to U.S. officials …

Link Search: Google, Ask, Technorati, Sphere, and IceRocket

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Discussion: New York Times, The Corner, Riehl World View, Hot Air, Roger L. Simon, Wake up America, My Two Sense, The Reaction, Brian Beutler, Dean's World, Blogs of War and Daily Pundit

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Discussion:

Helene Cooper / New York Times: U.S. Weighing Terrorist Label for Iran Guards

Michael Rubin / The Corner: Designating IRGC as terrorists

Dan / Riehl World View: Iran: You Know Where This Is Headed

Allahpundit / Hot Air: U.S. to Revolutionary Guards: You're all terrorists

Roger L. Simon: Reading the WaPo on Iran

Spree / Wake up America: U.S. Moving Against Revolutionary Guard

Chris Achorn / My Two Sense: Bush To Call Iranian Military Group "Terrorists"

Edward Copeland / The Reaction: How's that surge going? — Iraq has experienced its deadliest …

Brian Beutler: Where do we go from here? — When we're in a "war on terrorism" …

Dave Price / Dean's World: U.S. To Declare Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps A Terrorist Group

Blogs of War: Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps Finally Gets a Terrorist Label

Bill Quick / Daily Pundit: appearing to do something while actually doing nothing


I'm not liking this until I see stronger steps. There are tactical issues here and merely "freezing/taking funds" is a strategic move. The military units in the field, I am sure, would "Rather" have the Iranian explosives removed from service first. Take the money later.