Not just a negotiating ploy, but a ploy to play to the base and impress our bestest buddies in the world, Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Iran had nothing to gain by attacking the oil tankers. My guess is that the attacks were carried out by the usual suspects, i.e. the western intelligence agencies. The CIA, MI-6, and Mossad are the primary source of terrorism in the world - and the oil tanker attacks would be right up their alley.
The Military industrial complex along with big oil would love to see war in Iran. They would make ungodly amounts of money murdering millions of innocent people just like they did in all the previous wars for profit. The question is, are the American people stupid enough to allow it to happen.
My guess is we don't understand the facts of the situation nearly well enough to come to informed conclusions. The video evidence we have is quite conclusive that Iranians went out and retrieved the unexploded limpet mine, though. I don't see why that could not have been faked, of course, but I'm not one for conspiracy theories. Some are convinced by anti-American propaganda and disinformation that our government and military tell lies and stage false flags to start wars, but I don't buy it. "Iran" is a large, complex country. Someone in Iran might have thought this was a good idea, probably motivated by some rhetoric and such in Iran. I also hear that Iran's government isn't as centralized and unified as we might think, such that it would be irresponsible simply to say "Iran had nothing to gain" because Iran doesn't always act as a single entity. Someone in Iran was likely behind this. But I don't want to see some kind of attack or invasion over this incident, even accepting that Iranians were most likely responsible for this. It isn't serious enough to warrant such an extreme response, and it is also important that the Iranian government officially denies any involvement and, more importantly, that they oppose such actions. I'm sure they do oppose this precisely because of what the consequences would be. As long as they act to stop such acts in the future and work to secure that shipping lane, I don't see a problem.
I don't know who did it. I don't follow these things closely anymore. That said, I have a very good understanding as to how our military-industrial complex and intelligence agencies operate. False flags are the norm. If they are not outright carried out by our forces, they are farmed out to actual terrorist groups or mercenaries for hire. The U.S. and UK always provide material and logistical support, and usually provide funding as well. If you don't understand that the U.S. uses false flags as a staple of operations, you obviously haven't studied the subject. Do some research on Operation Gladio, and that will give you the basic blueprint for how the western intelligence agencies carry out these operations. The BBC did some decent documentaries on Gladio.
Funny how so many right wingers oppose granting sanctuary to political refugees from Central America but gave it to fascist dictator and murderer Shah Palavhi. That is what happens when a government grants such asylum to a wanted political criminal like him.
FINALLY! You and I actually agree on something! I'll enjoy this moment as long as I can, because it probably won't last for long.... Oh, BTW -- no, we aren't going to destroy Iran... not yet. If we had been going to rip 'em up, we'd have already started the bombing campaign. But, any more attacks on shipping through the Gulf of Oman or the Persian Gulf and the Islamo-Nazis in Tehran better get ready for an express-trip to Islamo-heaven to greet their promised '72 virgins and 28 young boys'....
You're generalizing based on false information about this Operation Gladio, it seems. https://web.archive.org/web/2008032...ate.gov/media/Archive/2006/Jan/20-127177.html So, no, we do not do false flags and they are not the norm for us.
Oy vey, that's a powerful amount of research you did there, lol... I've got decades of experience and research behind me, and you perform one click Like I said, watch a couple of the BBC documentaries - they at least give you the tip of the iceberg.
Here are some relevant comments on this: http://www.politicalforum.com/index.php?threads/can-we-trust-iran.417137/#post-1065194746
