The Iranians are excellent salesmen, experts in building perceived power. In the Middle East, the cradle of human civilization, rules have not changed for thousands of years: Whoever launched a massive missile attack to harm us deserves to be treated as if they succeeded. And the response would be accordingly, like we did on Oct. 7. Otherwise, you allow the next April 14 to occur.
On Friday, about 36 hours before the Iranian attack, an "Iran expert" stated: "I hear Tehran speaking directly with Washington and London conveying that it will not act recklessly, and I understand that all of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's 'approach' to the Iranian issue has failed. Today, Iran is being a responsible adult, sending messages and working towards calm. Israel is a wild bull in a china shop. We have never been as defeated and outcast as we are now."
Iran is the head of the terror octopus in the Middle East, funding and operating Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and the pro-Iranian militias in Syria and Iraq. Wherever instability appears, you will find the fingerprints of the ayatollahs. Iran's metastasizing proxies keep us busy, while the regime in Tehran rubs its hands with glee, almost unscathed, as it continues developing its nuclear program under the cover of chaos. The statement "Today, Iran is being a responsible adult" is akin to its sister "Hamas is deterred." These statements are doubly serious in light of the attack on Saturday night. Even the ending is incorrect, given the Western coalition that has formed to help us with military defense and diplomatic backing.
Similar analyses appeared before Oct 7. as well. In essence, they claim Israel is the problem. Just as with the issue of the Hamas captives, that same group consistently faults only the Israeli side, especially Prime Minister Netanyahu, even though Hamas has been rejecting the proposals, as confirmed by the Americans. The truth must be told: The demonstrations and severe calls against the Israeli government in the midst of the war played into Hamas' hands, and have taught them that it is worthwhile to wait until we surrender to their demands. Another commentator said this week: "A man bit a dog. 'I had to bite it back,' explained B. Gantz-Netanyahu, the bitten one who insisted on biting as well... 'While it is true I dealt it a heavy blow before it bit me, got my rabies shot beforehand, and the bite itself didn't hurt, that's the way it is in our neighborhood, they won't respect you if you don't punish the dog with a bite for a bite.'" Like him, many others said similar things, hailing from the same circle that has had critical influence over our society for the past dozen years on Israel's policies.
A series of commentators – including "has beens" who were the national intelligence briefers – are convinced that they see a dog, not a civilization with an ancient playbook. These statements attempt to transform a myth into a rational template. It is a certain stream of thought in the West that has failed almost every time it was required to predict risks arising from the abyss of history and expressing meta-rational, mythical, religious forces. They did not know how to contain such forces, and today they still lack the tools to deeply deal with other codes of conduct so far removed from their world. In this case, what remains is to pressure the familiar (the rational), meaning Israel.
This perception is described as "balanced", "prudent" and "logical". These are empty words, covering up an inflexible ideological mindset that projects its own psychological patterns onto the enemy. History teaches that this is not rationalism, but being wedded to a governing paradigm that blinds one from seeing reality squarely. In other words: A misconception. It is important to beware of such experts. We have had enough.
