Thursday, February 23, 2012

Iran, Gas Prices, and What's Next


So as many of you probably already know that Israel is being pressured by many members of the U.N. in order to prevent preemptive military strikes against nuclear sites in Iran. It seems that now Brazil has joined the discussion as well, (Click here). Of course Iran's reactions to the sanctions put in place by the U.S. and other nations are being felt here every time we go to the gas pumps and certainly Iran is feeling the pain too but one must wonder ; "How long can this go on?". With gas prices already at record highs for this certain time of year it is frightening to think of just how high they may climb, (Gas $). Not that that is the biggest concern. Of course a nuclear Iran would be far more dangerous than high fuel prices but it seems that as of right now there really is no end in sight. Iran isn't yet showing signs (at least publicly) that the sanctions are hurting but it is almost certain that they are. What makes me think and worry about this whole situation is how China and Iran's neighboring nations may react. Will they abandon Iran or will they give support? Preemptive military strikes would seem to me like a big mistake at this time, especially considering the fact that the United States hasn't been out of Iraq very long at all. Not to mention that we are still very committed to Afghanistan. We cannot afford to be drawn into another war but I find it hard to believe that we would just let Israel go in all alone. Then again I could be wrong here. Obama has shown some pretty strong resilience in the face of military challenges thus far. Yes, he did get involved with Libya but only in a minor supporting role and whether we view it as good or bad, we still aren't in Syria (though only time will tell). So I guess it's come to a big stare down with Iran and the only question is; "Who will flinch first?".

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