So what, they are still guilty and should be nuked. Besides they probably have WMDs buried near their schools, hospitals, water plants and churches. They have lots of oil too, they're Arabs and are hiding Osama bin Laden. A distinct threat to world Democracy and world peace. We gotta get rid of some more DU too, that stuff is to dangerous to store.

Iranians aren't Arabs. They are Aryans/Persians. Anyway, I know you are joking right?

Oh, the Jewish State won't like to hear this. AIPAC et al had their black hearts set on Darth Cheney bombing Israel's neighbor all to hell.

This NIE has been on hold for 18 (??) months. It was not allowed to be published earlier because the White House kept sending it back demanding that it be rewritten. I also understand that this version has been heavily edited, and is but a shadow of it's former self.

Yeah, I was joking. But the situation over there with our military prepared to strike actually isn't very funny. I still am afraid Bush is going to bomb them, but maybe the people who tell him what to do are backing off.

In an attempt to make light of his lying again to the American public in order to precipitate yet another oil war, W. Bush looks for Iranian nukes under his desk in the oval office.

Years from now, millions of red-state-of-mind Americans will still be afraid that Iran is going to nuke them.

Can't we waterboard Darth Cheney for world peace?

Remember when George Tennent, head of the CIA briefed Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld in Sept of 2001, from a top secret report, and said that Iraq did NOT have ANY weapons of mass destruction and had not purchased any uranium from Africa.

In anger, Bush ordered Tennent to bury that report and Tenent did. A few weeks later the NIE report was given to Colin Powell to read to the congress and the public and that top secret document was not in the altered NIE report. Instead, the NIE report stated that Saddam DID have WMDs and he HAD purchased uranium. Two weeks later, Congress gave Bush all of the power he needed to attack Iraq and here we is.___ and Powell took the blame for the G-damn lies.

The news that honest intelligence experts were planning to get this report released to the public is quite probably what caused Cheney's irregular heart beat recently.

Let's all hope that the actual release today doesn't kill him —– NOT.

Curious also that the White House release of its comments and RESPONSE to the release of this report is tagged as being released by the New York Times exactly 59 minutes ago (by Google News search), while the actual report itself is listed as having been released by the same honest NYT only 26 minutes ago???

Looks like someone's friends at the NYT tried to give the Bush response a bit of an edge over the report itself.

The White House war-heads have taken a drubbing on Iran intelligence. It now appears that both within and outside the U.S., a policy of Bush/Cheney containment is being applied. This gives hope that the political noose around their necks will increasingly be tightened and their insanity will be brought under control.

The Republican schedule to attack Iran in the 2008 election cycle is in place. When it happens, the election will be either called off or will be phrased with new 'Support America in Wartime' distortions, which are planned to prevent any 'treasonous' discussions about the President or Republican rule, and to emasculate the Democrats.

Besides, once Pakistan falls to the mullahs, the Khan Islamic Bomb project will be turned back on, and a few real weapons will be sold to Iran, to be put on their defensive missiles (on the QT of course).

So, What, Me Worry? Bush and his Mob have created just One Big Happy World! And the Bush Crime Family's Amerikan government, through its war on trans-national 'terror', has declared War on ALL THE WORLD! A war without an objective other than power, without a real enemy except everybody Not the War-Makers, a war even on Bush's own nation, Americans themselves!

But let's not speak truth, no, let's speak spin. Our War is for Goodness. Our Corporate Masters deign to allow us to live. We mustn't point out silly truths. For our emperor has his clothes on, and our empire is one of sweetness and light. Let's hope that light is not finally the flash from exploding nuclear bombs.

so what??

My neighbour's kid could probably produce a nuclear weapon in his GARAGE by 2015...who couldn't?

This article coheres with the view that if iran is working to build nuclear weapons, we must invade, i.e., the article plays into the hands of cheney and his ilk. The only real solution to iranian hostility to the u.s., is to END THE U.S. OCCUPATION OF THE ME.

cheney probably pulled a "Red Foxx" when hi heard what the eport would say...

" What? No Iran nukes, no credible threat?? Oh Oh, I feel the big one commin' on...Beelzebubba, Ah'm comin' buddy!"

This seems like a minor speed-bump at best. As we've already seen, it isn't too big a deal to change up the cover stories. They already started with the "IED's come from Iran" stories and the finding that the entire Revolutionary Guard are terrorists. Now we just "discover" some Iranian uniforms on the wrong side of the border, or somehow otherwise "prove" Iranians killed American soldiers, and the war is back on track.

It is very interesting that the NIE not only acknowledges the absence of evidence of a specific WEAPONS project, but concludes the absence of a program. This shows that someone is working hard to reassert the independence of the intelligence community from political pressure and reestablish its credibility.

However, the key issue isn't the work to specifically develop a bomb, it's the work to create the facilities and capabilities to enrich uranium and produce plutonium. Iran is still moving full steam ahead on this and there is still no plausible explanation of the motives behind it which does not include having an option to make nuclear weapons.

"The new report concludes that... it would still be at least two years before Tehran would have enough highly enriched uranium to produce a nuclear bomb. But it says it is still "very unlikely" Iran could produce enough of the material by then."

It's hard to know what this means. Iran's declared intentions would give it the capability to produce enough highly enriched uranium within two years of now. They might slip on achieving those goals, but the more important point is that Iran's program would in a few more years give it the capability to produce enough HEU for a bomb within about a month of a decision to do so, and also to produce plutonium at the rate of a few bombs worth per year.

So, the good news is that the intelligence community joins the military in not lining up behind Cheney and the neocons in their march to an immediate war with Iran. But the bad news is that this issue isn't going away any time soon.

As usual the lies that have been pouring out of Washington will be swept under the rug and nobody will be held accountable.
The mistreatment of Mr. Ahmadinejad by that pig Lee Bollinger will also be forgotten.
They will just play down the fact that they tried to lead us to war against Iran, based on a fusillade of lies, in an effort to pirate more resources.
Criminal action demands accountability. I've said all along that Iran wasn't building nukes. I never bought into any of that nonsense even for a second. Some people did though and they need to be held accountable. I would say that anyone that bought into the "Iran is building nukes" nonsense should lose their privilidge to vote based on their gullibility. These people didn't learn their lessons in the Iraq war, failed to learn their lesson in Afghanistan, and were willing to believe the lies about Iran. Those people are unfit to cast a vote for anyone.

Mark Abram says:
-However, the key issue isn't the work to specifically develop a bomb, it's the work to create the facilities and capabilities to enrich uranium and produce plutonium. Iran is still moving full steam ahead on this and there is still no plausible explanation of the motives behind it which does not include having an option to make nuclear weapons.-

Iran is not attempting to construct nuclear weapons.
Iran is entitled to pursue nuclear power under the non-proliferation treaty. That is what they are currently doing. Enriching uranium is necessary for nuclear power. They have already been inspected and are continually inspected by the IAEA. They are being watched like a hawk by numerous countries. There is no 'threat' and there is no 'issue'. Iran is clean. The only people still pushing the nuke nonsense (thats what it is is NONSENSE) are Israelis or those that want to plunder Iranian resources.
I urge you to discontinue watching FOX News.

The only way a dog learns not to chase cars and try to bite the wheels, is to catch one,thats what needs to happen to the US ,hurry and get a mouthful of chrome then go whine in yer kennel ie the Whitehouse and Pentagon

I see, THELORAX. If I should believe a lie told by any president, or some other high government official, I should be held accountable, banned from voting. __ Wow, what if I lie, and say I didn't ever believe the other lie, then would I be allowed to vote? Of course you could have me water boarded, or have my feet put in boiling oil and then I'd tell the truth, __ right? Hope you don't get elected to anything.

The oligarchy, including the corporate oligarchy and the powerful players in the government, is not a monolith. The plutocrats may agree that there should be a plutocracy, but only the hopelessly simpleminded would believe that settles any significant issues. It appears that the saner forces are pushing back against madman Cheney and his monkey.

George Warmonger Bush will bomb Iran anyway. You can bank on it.

Kem -
If you actually believed that Iran is constructing nuclear weapons, based on what FOX News told you, after they lied to you about 9/11, lied to you about Bin Laden in Tora Bora, and lied to you about Saddam and his WMD. If after all these lies were exposed you STILL listen to the liar and believe that Iran is building nukes, despite a complete lack of evidence, with credible agencies reponsible for inspecting Iran telling you there's no weapons program, how can you reasonably expect to be of sound enough mind to cast a vote on any topic?

The Arabs in North Korea are expected, over the next couple of weeks, to provide proof positive they took no action to create nuclear bombs until their food, heating oil and cash were cut off by the Bush Administration.

ODNI needs to check on the Polar Bears; there's no telling how they may be reacting to inaction on global warming; you know "Polar Bear" backwards spells "Arab terrorist".

Mark Abram: "...it's the work to create the facilities and capabilities to enrich uranium and produce plutonium."

I understand that Iran has centrifuges installed to produce enriched uranium (i.e., uranium that is significantly the isotope U-235. This isotope is required for light-water power reactors (at a low end enrichement of 2-3%) and for a nuclear weapon (at the high end enrichement of >98%). However, plutonium is not produced in centrifuges. It must be created in a reactor, as the result of bombardment of uranium with neutrons. Are the Iranians capable of this? Or they pursuing this? NOT according this latest estimate.

Today's NIE report stands in stark contrast to the White House's propaganda campaign laying the groundwork for military action against Iran, a campaign that dates back almost six years—to Bush's 2002 State of the Union address in which he designated Iran as a founding member of the "axis of evil." Since then, this drumbeat has waxed and waned as other concerns—primarily the disastrous invasion and occupation of Iraq—have often commanded center stage. Now, with the Bush administration approaching its final year in office, a renewed push and a shorter fuse have become increasingly evident. My 3-minute YouTube video entitled "Forewarned Is Forearmed: Bush On Iran" is available HERE. It offers a very brief but deeply troubling chronicle of the president's public warmongering and demonization of Iran.

Mark Abram December 3rd, 2007 2:23 pm:

"However, the key issue isn't the work to specifically develop a bomb, it's the work to create the facilities and capabilities to enrich uranium and produce plutonium. Iran is still moving full steam ahead on this and there is still no plausible explanation of the motives behind it which does not include having an option to make nuclear weapons."

"no plausible explanation"? Gosh, Canada produces oil and they have nuclear reactors. I guess that means they are the enemy too!

"no plausible explanation"? Golly, The Americans have overthrown the Iranian's democratic government(53), installed a brutal tyrant(Shaw), supported an eight year war of aggression against them(Saddam), maintained unilateral sanctions and armed mercenary bandits attacking across the border from Iraq.

Apart from that, well no I can't fathom why the Iranians wouldn't trust the US to deliver nuclear fuel to them every month instead of using their own.

In a recent interview, Valerie Plame Wilson, said she slipped the Iranians the family recipe for cucumber salad in place of the bomb instructions; with everyone at the White House writing for the mainstream media apparently no one has time to read it.

Why aren't we concerned about the only country that has an arsenal of 200 nuclear warheads, Israel? Focusing on Iran's enrichment is ridiculous in light of this.

The report shows BushCo once again with their lying war-mongering pants down, and all the media as usual in bed with them in order to sell soap with terror....And the clown above says this doesn't contradict what we've been told and told again....You won't see this on FOX! Or much of anywhere else I'm sure....After all, the brave Americans are fighting terror by shopping, shopping and shopping beyond their means....

The uncontrolled spread of falafel is something I don't feel is getting enough attention.

KEM PATRICK wrote: Two weeks later, Congress gave Bush all of the power he needed to attack Iraq and here we is.___ and Powell took the blame for the G-damn lies.

Welllll, its not as if lying does not come easily to Powell. After all, he was responsible for the initial cover-up of the Mai Lai massacre, and has since whitewashed the associated atrocities.

Dreamertoo Iranians don't eat Falafel.

TheLorax-

No serious analyst believes Iran's uranium enrichment program is motivated solely by nuclear power. Instead of all the work to build the facilities and master the technology, they could much more cheaply just buy uranium fuel from Russia or elsewhere. But the same plants that can be used to make low enriched uranium for nuclear power can also be used to make high enriched uranium for bombs. In fact, it is easier to make enough HEU for a bomb than it is to make enough LEU for a reactor.

zimmie53-

Iran's nuclear power reactors, when operational, including the Bushehr reactor that Russia is close to finishing for them, will produce plutonium. But it would normally be "reactor grade" plutonium, which can be used to make bombs but is less reliable and harder to use, probably giving lower yield. Instead, Iran would like to produce "weapons grade" plutonium, which you do basically by cycling the fuel through faster. The ideal way to do this if you are trying to start up a bomb program is with a heavy water moderated, natural uranium fueled reactor like the one the US built at Hanford in 1942, like the ones that have been used in many other countries to produce plutonium for weapons. So, Iran is building a 40 MW reactor of this type at Arak which will be operational in another few years. The heavy water plant is already half-built and producing heavy water for the reactor. All this is openly declared to the IAEA. The Iranians say it's for producing medical and industrial isotopes, but they already have a reactor that can do this and it doesn't make any economic sense for them to build this much bigger one, which will be able to produce enough plutonium for about two bombs a year.

The warheads in my hometown want to know: why the hell does Iran needs nuclear power to generate electricity when they have all that oil?

Answer: Because oil is an increasingly valuable export commodity. Why burn it at home when you can trade it for Euros, Yuan and Yen?

Iran's second largest export item is chemicals and pharmaceuticals -probably derived from petroleum feedstock. So why burn it when you can add value and export it?

They'd be smarter to go with renewables. But with Russia and France falling all over themselves to sell reactors, how can they resist?

However, I'm convinced that Iran intends to acquire a nuclear deterrent. They'd be fools not to. I say let 'em. Their nukes won't be aimed at Tel-Aviv. They'll be aimed at American aircraft carriers.

See, the Iranians aren't hot to develop a nuclear bomb after all. So the U.S. can call off its pitt bulls and leave Iran alone.

It's obvious Bush didn't want this released. How is it that it was? Does this represent an intentional shot across the bows from the intelligence agencies?

dc beltway--yes, but perhaps some Iraqi Arab refugees will open up falafel stands in Iran and the Iranians will develop a taste for it, hence dreamertoo's concern.

Who knows where falafel will turn up next? I'm a WASP expat from the US living in Central America, and I eat falafel, even here. I have to eat it with flour tortillas, though, instead of pita.

(And, thanks, dreamertoo, I got a good laugh out of your comment.)

Something tells me the intelligence services are tired of being used as Cheney's stooges.

jjohnjj-Iran has a large and growing population that likes energy the way we do. Without significant new crude oil extraction investment, Iran may run out of "exportable" oil within a decade according to some experts. We progressives need to make it clear to Bush that we will howl endlessly for Bush's permanent imprisonment if he attacks Iran now that this NIE has been released.

I'll bet there will be another slew of retirements, reassignments, and firings to get rid of anybody that put facts before ideology. That has been the pattern for the past seven plus years. The sign on the door reads "Sycophants Only." All others need not apply.

Hi There THELORAX. Can't you read? I wrote __ IF__ I should believe any lies our president told us. Do you assume I did believe any? In any case, your post was silly blather in case you didn't know it. Lots of people, the vast majority including most of Congress believed the first lies Bush, the CIA and Cheney told; and why shouldn't they have? If you knew it was a lie in 2001, why didn't you insure everyone in the world did know the truth, did you have some top secret information that you withheld from all of humanity?

For you or anyone else say anyone who believed any of those lies should be held accountable and barred from voting is really wacko thinking, the type of thinking a crazy dictator would use.

WTF, I wrote what occurred, Colin Powell was not privey to that top secret CIA report. He took the blame for telling the lie Bush/Cheney initiated and Tennant allowed. If you wish to change the subject for some reason, Okay, knock yourself out. I wished to post some interesting info not everyone may be aware of.

Kivals accurately states: "The oligarchy, including the corporate oligarchy and the powerful players in the government, is not a monolith."

Yes, the global corporatist Empire hiding behind the facade of 'Vichy America' seems to have decided that the Bush/Cheney/neocon team is a bit more fascist and destructively war-like than they really wanted when they installed Bush.

The ruling corporatist Empire is not going to make the mistake they did in Germany --- of installing a nut-case and letting him get too strong to wack.

Out goes the bad pawn, and in comes the good pawn.

What the American people really, really have to understand is that Bush and Cheney's departure (and the departure of the hard-right, brown-shirted Republican wing-nuts in 2008) does not mean that the Empire is gone and buried, and that our little Empire problem is over --- cause it ain't by a long shot.

This switch from a snarling neocon team to a softer looking neolib team is all done smoothly under the management of the same global corporatist Empire.

We still have an Empire problem right here in River City folks.

Why does something that appears to be good news have a foul smell?? Who did we have to blame for no weapons of mass destruction? Someone will have to take the fall for this booboo. And, we will simply have to come up with another reason to nuke Iran. Leave it to Cheney to come up with another reason or another country that needs to be notched on his big plan. Venezuela?

No such thing as good news, ever, on these blogs. The intelligence wing is standing up to the loonies, that's good news, period. It may or may not solve the problem, but it may well mean that a whole bunch of people won't die. I for one am going to take a day to be happy about it.

I agree, MUGGLES. We will see if this is big news on every channel. It should be, since The New York Times published it. Tennant should have ignored Bush in 2001 and we would likely not be in this disasterous mess in the Mid-East.

Hi Billy, __ do you think Bush would understand it?

Thank you for publishing this NYT!!! If it doesn't keep this criminal regime from an attack of Iran then it definitely sets the stage for their criminal prosecution for crimes against humanity.

Personally I feel Bush won't be able to bomb them but the repugs will use Iraq as a scare tactic in the coming selection.

Then they'll get Israel to bomb them . . .

Any of you guys think this means some corporations, even the most penny pinching (I'm looking at you Wal-Mart, Mcdonalds, Home Depot, Microsoft, etc.) are themselves now afraid of this administration? Also, shouldn't Cheny's buddies at Haliburton realize that a radioactive Iran means no money for them?

dcbeltway December 3rd, 2007 1:51 pm

"Can't we waterboard Darth Cheney for world peace?"

Only if it's not considered to be torture!

jlocke:

Canada produces oil, has nuclear reactors, and enriches uranium. And has had these capabilities for many years, and could produce crude nuclear weapons within months of a decision to do so. I don't get your point. All I ever said was that Iran wants to get into the same position as Canada wrt the ability to make nuclear weapons.

You might say, why doesn't Canada's uranium enrichment and plutonium related activity prove it's trying to get the bomb? Part of the answer is that the fact they haven't made nuclear weapons proves they haven't wanted to. But the nuclear fuel work makes much more sense for Canada than it does for Iran. Canada got into this before there was a uranium glut, when it looked like a good business. Canada has lots of uranium ore and can make money producing uranium fuel for countries like Iran to buy. Iran has very little and poor uranium deposits and can buy the fuel much more cheaply than they can produce it. But then they wouldn't get the bomb.

I don't deny that Iran has legitimate security concerns about its neighbors and the US.

However, they would not need to rely on the US to deliver nuclear fuel to them, since there are so many other suppliers out there, including Russia and Canada, and they would not need shipments every month either, so if there were an interruption from one supplier they could take their time finding another.

There really is no plausible interpretation of their determination to have their own uranium enrichment capability other than ensuring that they have the option to make nuclear weapons. And if that is not evidence enough, the plutonium production reactor seals the case.

EVERYONE: READ THE ACTUAL UNCLASSIFIED NIE: It's short and to the point, and certainly not propaganda.
http://www.dni.gov/press_releases/20071203_release.pdf