Originally Posted by levite

I believe I will respectfully disagree with this prediction, D. I think if the US attacks Iran, the surrounding countries in the region will not actively oppose it, but they will deeply resent the repeated intrusion of the West, and radical Islamist groups will get a jackpot of increased fodder for opposing the "Crusader Armies." American popularity-- always tenuous in the region-- will suffer even more.

On the other hand, nobody in that region likes Israel, as it is, anyhow. They have no popularity to suffer. I think most of the countries in the region-- which aren't all that crazy about Iran anyhow (Iran being non-Arab and Shiite-dominated), and are expecting Israel to take out Iranian nuclear plants before they can get a bomb together, anyway-- will blow some hot air about the Zionist aggressor, but nothing will happen. The radical Islamist groups, will get nothing they don't already have. They can't actually hate Israel more than they do. And I doubt there is a seething mass of people just waiting to go radical that would all be pushed over the brink by Israel taking out Iranian nuclear plants.

But I think there are plenty of people who don't like what the US has done in Iraq, but don't actively hate the US yet, who would in fact come to hate the US if we followed up Iraq with strikes on Iran.

I think in either case, not much will really result from the Iranian nukes getting taken out, because I really don't believe all that many people are interested in Iran having the bomb, especially with Ahmedinijad's finger on the button.