Attacking Iran Is A Really, Really Bad Idea

If you think through the consequences of attacking Iran preemptively, the risk-reward ratio seems most unfavorable.
The best-case upside is that Iran is disarmed permanently, and everyone shrugs their shoulders and accepts it. What are the chances, really, that will happen?
The worst-case downside is appallingly bad. It could rally the Iranian population behind that mullahs - a population that right now is very unhappy with their leadership, and somewhat pro-American. That would all be swept away, and even worse, it could rally the majority Sunni muslims behind the minority Shi'ites in Iran in a way no other event possibly could. It would be the polarization of the West versus Islam that Osama bin Laden has long been seeking. It could end the disunity in the Muslim world that thus far has worked to the West's advantage. keep reading