Planning the sequels

Nothing distracts a people from the failures of their 'leaders' than the patriotic beating of war drums.  The long-running reality series "Afghanistan" continues to lose ratings on its prolonged slide to cancellation.  Neither half of the bifactional ruling party wants the public's attention on domestic deterioration this close to an election.  So the powers that be are busily at work preparing new weapons of mass distraction: a sequel to the short-lived "Libya," and the long-anticipated "Nuke hunt: Iran."

The US's top military officer has warned Syria it could face armed intervention as international outrage grows over the massacre of women and children by tanks and artillery in Houla.
General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, said that following the UN security council's condemnation of the slaughter – in which more than 100 people were killed, many of them children – there needed to be increased diplomatic pressure on Damascus. But he added that the US would be prepared to act militarily if it was "asked to do so".
"There is always a military option," he told Fox News. "You'll always find military leaders to be somewhat cautious about the use of force, because we're never entirely sure what comes out on the other side. But that said, it may come to a point with Syria because of the atrocities."

Meanwhile:

If Iran’s uninterrupted progress toward nuclear weaponization were not enough, if Iran’s repeated violations of United Nations resolutions were not enough and if its gross and mass violations of human rights were not enough, you’d think a years-long campaign to assassinate Americans would be sufficient to enlighten the administration as to the danger and motives of a revolutionary jihadist state. But no.
With a competent and responsible administration, we’d be very publicly drawing up a military option, putting ships in the region and consulting with Congress about our options. We might even discuss with Israel its “red lines” — and let that discussion become public. We would be justified in taking all steps needed to unleash a military option and/or to support Israel in the event of hostilities. But we don’t.

Thus do the drums beat ever louder for the next stanza of war without end...