Standby for Action

The Bush administration recently announced more money and more troops in Afghanistan. don't letthis distract you from the reality which is apparent from Stars and Stripes....

Despite the surge in violence, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was called away from providing air support to coalition forces in Afghanistan to be part of the U.S. Navy presence off the Horn of Africa.

A second carrier, the USS John C. Stennis, has been dispatched to the U.S. Central Command theater of operations.

Read the reports from Afghanistan and you will be assured that the Eisenhower was desperately needed but it is all about Iran now. To quote Deadeye Dick from WaPo..

Vice President Cheney said the deployment this month of a second aircraft-carrier [Stennis] task force to the Persian Gulf delivered a "strong signal" of the United States' commitment to confront Iran's growing influence in the region.

When the Stennis arrives on station there will be "50 warships in the Mideast." There have not been 2 aircraft carriers in the Mideast since the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

This is very important to note and an extremely dangerous situation.

As the rhetoric grows more strident, a U.S. military official in the Gulf likened the U.S.-Iran standoff to the buildup in hostility in Europe before World War I, when the assassination of the heir to the Austrian throne triggered a tragic war that engulfed a continent.

''A mistake could be made and you could end up in something that neither side ever really wanted, and suddenly it's August 1914 all over again,'' the U.S. officer said on condition of anonymity, because of the sensitivity of the issue. ''I really believe neither side wants a fight.''

Iranian coast guard vessels recently veered into territorial waters on the Arab side of the Gulf, an event that could have been viewed as either a mistake or a provocation, the officer said. Both sides are on tenterhooks. ''A boat crosses a line ... but what does it mean? You've got to be very careful about overreacting,'' the officer said.

I wouldn't be too concerned about an "accident"at least from our side, until the Stennis is in position and we have assured air superiority in the region. Iran's defenses are specifically designed to repel this scenario so if the worst happens ,we are in for a fight. This could turn into a world o' shit in a heartbeat. Just one bull move from either side and it is going to be a bad one.