[EyeBrock]

I can orientate myself to that way of thinking Shep.

In my past life I was at RAF Akrotiri when Beirut was kicking off.

USS New Jersey used to shell positions in Lebanon at night and the flashes from her guns and tomahawks looked like lightening. We had Lebanese Hawker Hunter’s divert in with battle damage and/or fuel issues. Everywhere in the Middle East is close by.

[BartSimpson]

bootlegga bootlegga:

True, but most of Israel's enemies already have IRBMs loaded with nerve gas and/or poison gas, so if the balloon ever goes up in that way, the entire Middle East will be a desolate place for decades.

Upsides: 1) It'll finally be peaceful in the ME. 2) Free oil.

bootlegga bootlegga:

I don't think that any of the crazies in the ME want that, and my best guess is that they look at nukes almost solely as a method of keeping the US off their backs. Just look at North Korea - they are believed to have nukes and there is ZERO talk of bombing or invading them. Instead China 'talks' to them on our behalf and the US, Japan and the West send them aid to prevent most people there from starving.

The Iranian regime is on par with Pat Robertson and the like who want to 'bring on' the end of the world. The Iranians are motivated by their religious desire to force the Mahdi (Messiah) to come to earth and vanquish the enemies of Shiite Islam. If they have a nuke they will absolutely use it and be pleased with themselves.

The Norks, OTOH, just want nukes to use as a means of extorting other nations into giving them food, oil, and porn.

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

There's also the significance of Jerusalem to the Muslim world.

I've long wondered why the Israelis never 'accidentally' bombed the crap out of that abomination the Muslims built on the grounds of the Holy Temple. Had they dealt with that problem back in 1967 it would have solved a lot of issues.

[PublicAnimalNo9]

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

There's also the significance of Jerusalem to the Muslim world. Something that most here can't really appreciate, having never been to Israel(and knowing SFA about the reality of the place), is just how small it is. Israel is tiny. I've walked from Jerusalem to Bethlehem(Arab occupied Judea) and back to kill part of an afternoon. You can easily ride a bicycle from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv in a few hours. Anything done to the Israelis will also be done to millions of Arabs(...citizens and squatters), Christian and Muslim both. The Israelis jokingly keep their eyes on masses of Arabs hurrying away from the borders.

I think what really showed me how small Israel actually is, was on a show about various Air Forces. IIRC, they said that on full afterburner, you can fly from one end of the country to the other in about 2 minutes. So even when they're just training, they have to constantly be aware of leaving Israeli airspace.

[ShepherdsDog]

$1:

I've long wondered why the Israelis never 'accidentally' bombed the crap out of that abomination the Muslims built on the grounds of the Holy Temple. Had they dealt with that problem back in 1967 it would have solved a lot of issues.

No...it would have opened a whole can of worms. The building itself is beautiful, and only ccupies a tiny portion of what was Herod's temple, which was once the largest building in the world. I don't think that it will ever be rebuilt for religious reasons, as the modern Jews aren't 'Temple Jews', they are Synagogue Jews(The Levites role as hereditary priests and judges ended with the desecration and destruction of the temple and many city dwelling Jews being dispersed throughout the world, as punishment for their rebellion). The rest of the Jews(a significant number eventually converted to Christianity and later islam and intermarried with the Arab(and other)populations that migrated into the area.

The interesting thing about the Dome of the Rock is that Mohammed never entered, or came close to Jerusalem, yet Muslims claim this where he ascended into heaven.

[BartSimpson]

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

$1:

I've long wondered why the Israelis never 'accidentally' bombed the crap out of that abomination the Muslims built on the grounds of the Holy Temple. Had they dealt with that problem back in 1967 it would have solved a lot of issues.

No...it would have opened a whole can of worms. The building itself is beautiful, and only ccupies a tiny portion of what was Herod's temple, which was once the largest building in the world. I don't think that it will ever be rebuilt for religious reasons, as the modern Jews aren't 'Temple Jews', they are Synagogue Jews(The Levites role as hereditary priests and judges ended with the desecration and destruction of the temple and many city dwelling Jews being dispersed throughout the world, as punishment for their rebellion). The rest of the Jews(a significant number eventually converted to Christianity and later islam and intermarried with the Arab(and other)populations that migrated into the area.

The interesting thing about the Dome of the Rock is that Mohammed never entered, or came close to Jerusalem, yet Muslims claim this where he ascended into heaven.

The only reason the Dome of the Rock is still standing is because the Israelis know it would be a bad PR issue with the West if it were knocked down. That it would upset the Arab street is near to irrelevant because...well, what doesn't get that nest of vipers stirred up?

As to muslim claims, the horsepuckey about mohammed going to Jerusalem was probably some lie cooked up by someone after the Great Child Rapist died so they'd have an excuse to invade Jerusalem.

I call it 'horsepuckey' because if the Great Child Rapist had really ascended into heaven there then why is he buried in Medina? Or did someone lie about burying him in Medina so Medina could get in on some of that Hajj action that Mecca makes billions on every year?