When it comes to mainstream press reports about a possible Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, it’s time to check the bullshit detector.

Corporate media reports are claiming that the Pentagon and the White House are “worried” or “concerned” that the Israeli government may decide to attack Iran, and that the US is “trying to learn” what Israel’s real intentions are: is there a serious plan to attack or is this all just an effort to blackmail the US into taking stronger measures against Iran?

As CNN put it in a Nov. 4 report:

The United States has become increasingly concerned Israel could be preparing to strike Iran's nuclear program, a senior U.S. military official told CNN on Friday.

The U.S. military and intelligence community in recent weeks have stepped up "watchfulness" of both Iran and Israel, according to the senior U.S. military official and a second military official familiar with the U.S. actions. Asked if the Pentagon was concerned about an attack, the senior military official replied "absolutely." Both officials declined to be identified because of the extreme sensitivity of the matter.

Bzzzzzzzzzzz

Oops! The Bullshit detector just went off.

Missing from all these reports about Washington “concern,” and from statements being leaked by Pentagon and White House “sources,” is any mention of the fact that Israel’s entire air force consists of planes built in and funded by the United States. The F-15s and F-16s and the specially designed F-16I and F-15I, manufactured by Lockheed Martin and Boeing to Israeli Air Force specifications, are the planes that would have the job of delivering bombs to Iranian targets and providing cover against Iranian fighter defenses.

One word from the US and those weapons systems would be grounded. After all, without US spare parts and US financing, Israel’s air force ceases to exist.

So the claim that Washington is “worried” about Israel going it alone in a strike on Iran is, to put it bluntly, a lie.

Now you could get deeper into it and speculate if you like that both the Israeli government and the Obama Administration want to promote media speculation that Israel may be planning an attack, and for the same reason: to allow, or to pressure, Washington to tighten the economic screws on Iran and perhaps to step up covert attacks on Iran. Or alternatively, Washington wants Israel to attack Iran, but wants to be able to claim that the US isn’t behind it.

I tend to lean towards the first theory, because I don’t think that the US really wants the kind of explosion in the Middle East which would surely happen if Israel were to attack Iran. But then, who knows? The Neo-Cons have considerable sway in Washington, and these psychopaths do want such a conflict.

Whatever the truth of what’s going on, let’s at least clear away the Big Lie. With the Israeli Air Force almost totally dependent upon the largesse of the United States, Israel is not going to do anything to Iran that is not 100 percent approved in advance by Washington.

And if such an attack does happen, the US is behind it.