EDITORIAL: “Bad Options on Iran,” by Mortimer B. Zuckerman, U.S. News & World Report, 23 April 2007, p. 76.

Zuckerman is nothing if not consistent: in column after column he explains patiently why Iran getting nukes is America’s problem first and foremost and will inevitably force our use of military power. Israel’s 200 nuclear warheads find no mention. China’s and Russia’s implicit villainy are routinely stoked for imagery. America, we are told, is the only country that can deal with this. It’s us versus them, I tell you! We offered Iran multilateral diplomacy if only Tehran would first give up the only reason why we’d offer them multilateral diplomacy in the first place, and no, it did not work. Go figure. Therefore, war is the only option. Get used to this drumbeat from some writers. It will persist through the end of this administration, in ever-dimming hope Bush will pull the trigger. It will persist also to shape the presidential election, hoping to make a willingness to war with Iraq a litmus test on support to Israel and thus the money and the votes attached to that sentiment. If you feel like all this is designed to prep America for the next war in the Middle East, one that will fail dramatically and leave us more isolated than before, then you’re paying attention.