Not A Huge Fan

I'm not a huge fan of this move: $60 Bil in Arms Sale to the Saudis.

What is surprising, however, is that this deal seems to represent a highly controversial shift in how the administration plans to deal with Iran: from what wonks call (borrowing language from the Cold War) rollback to what's known as containment.

In plain language, the difference is between a policy aimed at stopping Iran from getting nukes (rollback) and one aimed at stopping Iran from using them if, or when, it does (containment). A look at the nature of the weapons Washington is planning to sell Riyadh, which reportedly also include the THAAD anti-ballistic missile defense system and an upgrade to the Saudis' Patriot batteries, makes it clear that the package is meant to help one of Iran's largest neighbors (and a longtime target of Iranian provocation) cope with nuclear-armed and potentially more belligerent Persian state.

I am neither excited about the prospect of Washington preparing to live with a nuclear armed Iran nor excited about giving the Saudis $60 Bil in guns. Who wants to bet some of that is going to be used against us sometime in the future?

A lot of people talk about how eliminating Saddam was helping out the Saudis get rid of one of their regional threats. I always thought it was the first step towards de-leveraging the Saudis stranglehold on oil prices and that Iraq was the Tattaglia and the Saudis were Barzini.