US Secretary of Defense Panetta: Attacking Iran's Facilities for the Development of Nuclear Weapons Could Have "Unintended Consequences"

Recently appointed US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta yesterday went on record as saying that an attack on Iran's nuclear weapons development facilities could have "unintended consequences." Providing further evidence of the Obama's administration unwillingness to confront Iran, Panetta declared at a Pentagon news conference:

"You've got to be careful of unintended consequences here. And those consequences could involve not only not really deterring Iran from what they want to do, but more importantly, it could have a serious impact in the region and it could have a serious impact on U.S. forces in the region."

In a nutshell, Panetta has just raised the white flag. How could a US secretary of defense be naive enough to declare for the benefit of Ahmadinejad and his Revolutionary Guard thugs that the US is not weighing a military option, even if such option is not being considered? The guffaws eminating from Tehran can be heard across the Atlantic.

Fortunately, not everyone is as daft as Panetta. In an opinion piece in yesterday's Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204224604577027921373481512.html), Mitt Romney declared:

"I want peace. And if I am president, I will begin by imposing a new round of far tougher economic sanctions on Iran. I will do this together with the world if we can, unilaterally if we must. I will speak out forcefully on behalf of Iranian dissidents. I will back up American diplomacy with a very real and very credible military option. I will restore the regular presence of aircraft carrier groups in the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf region simultaneously. I will increase military assistance to Israel and coordination with all of our allies in the region. These actions will send an unequivocal signal to Iran that the United States, acting in concert with allies, will never permit Iran to obtain nuclear weapons."

My understanding is that in Tehran today, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatolla Khamenei led prayers for Obama's reelection.