OK, Now I'M SCARED-Bloomberg: "Iran Could Produce Bomb in 16 Days"

[kpete]

(Kpete, this is NOT fun anymore - I am not nearly as afraid of them as I am of US!)

Iran Could Produce Nuclear Bomb in 16 Days, U.S. Says (Update1)

April 12 (Bloomberg) -- Iran, which is defying United Nations Security Council demands to cease its nuclear program, may be capable of making a nuclear bomb within 16 days if it goes ahead with plans to install thousands of centrifuges at its Natanz plant, a U.S. State Department official said.

``Natanz was constructed to house 50,000 centrifuges,'' Stephen Rademaker, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation, told reporters today in Moscow. ``Using those 50,000 centrifuges they could produce enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon in 16 days.''

In fact, Iran will move forward to ``industrial scale'' uranium enrichment involving 54,000 centrifuges at Natanz, the Associated Press quoted deputy nuclear chief Mohammad Saeedi as telling state-run television today.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said yesterday the country had succeeded in enriching uranium on a small scale for the first time, using 164 centrifuges. That announcement defies demands by the UN Security Council that Iran shut down its nuclear program this month.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=awSzbHpjozAo&refer=top_world_news

[Norquist Nemesis]

1. The Network is communicating

and yes, you should be scared. Very, very, very afraid.

[Deja Q]

2. How will they fly it over to the US?

Or get it past security?

Uranium is heavy. 50kg is difficult to transport succinctly.

It won't happen.

Fear is the only thing to fear... said a certain Rooseevelt... :D

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Where's Condi to screech "Mushroom Cloud" when ya really need her?

[annabanana]

4. she's revving her engines as we speak

she is busy "demanding" things of Iran.... You know.. just to soften them up..

god i wish someone would muzzle that beast.

[mike_c]

5. this is utter tripe....

Iran's centrifuge cascade is 164 centrifuges and they've achieved 3.5 percent enrichment instead of the MUCH more difficult 80-90 percent enrichment necessary for weapons grade material. This story is not much different from the one about me: if I had 50,000 industrial centrifuges and sufficient uranium hexafluoride in my backyard enrichment complex I'd only be a couple of weeks away from being the baddest dude in my neighborhood!

[phantom power]

6. But it's tripe that might work. Cynical mofos.

[LisaLynne]

23. Right -- that's the scary part.

People are just going to hear the "16 days" and go along with Bush & Psychos, Inc.

OMG, I just realized "16 Days", "16 words"!!!! Ok, I don't know -- it just suddenly seemed significant.

[in_cog_ni_to]

7. Bullshit. First, we get a story about Bush planning to Nuke Iran, secondly

we get a story about Iran enriching uranium (which I think is BULLSHIT) and now we get a story Iran could get a Nuclear Bomb in 16 days? BULLSHIT. Everyone with any information about Iran's nuclear capabilities has said all along it would be 5-10 YEARS before they had a bomb. THIS IS ALL BULLSHIT. IRAN'S PSYCHO PRESIDENT IS TAUNTING OUR PSYCHO PRESIDENT. ANYTHING the US government says is a LIE! I would have to ditto that for the Iranian prez too. JMCPO. Don't believe this crap.

On edit...NOTICE, ALL OF THESE STORIES HAVE COME OUT WITHIN DAYS OF EACH OTHER! IRAN CONVENIENTLY ENRICHED URANIUM DAYS AFTER LEARNING THE PSYCHO-IN-CHIEF MAY NUKE HIS COUNTRY? It's LAUGHABLE!

[Boo Boo]

8. This is the lamest propaganda I've ever seen!

The Bush admin is chock full of crazy people.

:silly:

[greyl]

9. NOT 16 days from today.

To be clear.

[Inland]

31. Oh. That makes a difference.

It's sixteen days effort after they get all the means of production fifteen years from now.

It's scheduled for September 4 to September 30, 2022.

[greyl]

41. Yes, a damn big difference. :) nt

[ProfessorGAC]

38. Hence The Propaganda Element

They could produce enough U235/90 to build a bomb every 16 days, once they have, install, comission, and optimize 54,000 centrifuges! The slant of this story is meant to instill fear, not inform. That's practically a dictionary example of propaganda.
The Professor

[greyl]

42. Yup, I agree.

In addition to being propaganda, it's laced with psychological terrorism against American citizens.

[Richard Steele]

10. I thought it was 45 minutes?

Yeah, this is bullshit.

[eek]

14. goes to show how skillfull these people are

that the Insane Clown Posse can *still* tweak we members of the Arched Eyebrow and Grain of Salt Society.

[berni_mccoy]

11. The U.S. HAS NO CREDIBILITY TO MAKE SUCH A CLAIM.

[berni_mccoy]

12. 16 words took us to war with Iraq... now 16 days take us to war with Iran

[coalition_unwilling]

35. And only another 16 days, weeks or (in best Rumsfeldian voice)

who knows? months before we decisively get our asses kicked out of the Persian Gulf for good. 1.2 billion Muslims worldwide will all be a-gunnin' for us. First stop, the 140,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq. Can you say "140,000 POWs"?

[benddem]

13. they just developed the uranium

they don't have the capability to weaponize it.

[ShortnFiery]

39. Bet you that won't figure into the Propaganda ? n/t

[Roland99]

15. They have only 10% of the needed centrifuges.

[robertpaulsen]

16. Stephen Rademaker is John Bolton's henchman!

On a recent, quite incredible Fox News special, Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney said we are already moving aircraft carriers into positions from which we could strike. He was then asked: "If you had to put a percentage on it, the chances that the U.S. will eventually have to take military actions against Iran, what would you put it at?" to which McInerney replied casually: "Well, I would put 1 percent of using ground forces, boots on the ground in Iran, I would put up 50 percent on a blockade, and I would put up 50 to 60 percent on precision air strikes on their nuclear development sites." He also observed casually that Iran wouldn't dare take on the United States. Perhaps the 60 million Iranians would greet our bombers with garlands and sweets. Do you see what I mean? Fox News, as you may know, is commonly known as "The War Channel," for similar work it did in promoting the war against Iraq.

Is Iran this kind of threat to anyone? As far as I can tell, ladies and gentlemen of the GOP Senate, the answer is "absolutely not," at least as long as they remain members in good standing of the NPT, which means they will permit the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect intrusively and constantly, as they have been doing. It has been the mission of John Bolton and his underling Stephen Rademaker to "reform" the United Nations in a way that dissolves the NPT and the need for the IAEA, not only to pave the way for the bombing of Bushehr, but also to get out from under the NPT provisions that require all the nuclear weapon powers to make progress toward making the world a nuclear-free zone.

http://antiwar.com/wanniski/?articleid=5956

[quiet.american]

20. Thank you. n/t

[IChing]

22. Please read the above post!!!!!Bolton's henchman!!!!!

PROPAGANDIST, FEAR-MONGERING, BOOT-LICKING ASSHAT

[robertpaulsen]

30. Oh yeah! And Rademaker's wife worked with Bolton at AEI.

Bolton was Senior Vice President of the American Enterprise Institute, the institution where both Pletka and Rodman work. Veronique Rodman is married to Peter Rodman, who is now Assistant Secretary for International Security Affairs at the Pentagon -- and someone who was an ally of John Bolton's in the administration.

Danielle Pletka is married to Stephen Rademaker, Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control. Rademaker reports directly to John Bolton and is cut from the same ideological cloth as Bolton. I spoke on a panel at the annual Sandia National Laboratories' International Security Conference with Rademaker and Gerard Baker, then at the Financial Times, and was stunned by the number of references in his speech to "evil".

Most strategists and negotiators need to be able to deal with players commanding forces that threaten American interests, but the amount of hyperbole in Rademaker's talk seemed to me to be something that would not lend itself to negotiations with the world's most dangerous thugs on how to tie down weapons and proliferation problems.

http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/000545.html

[robertpaulsen]

32. If you have a strong stomach, here's an interview with him on Bolton.

To say Rademaker worships Bolton is an understatement. He actually refers to Bolton as "superhuman":

http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/Rademacher%20Interview.pdf

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

34. excellent work. nt

[Marie26]

17. Uh-huh. nt

[WilliamPitt]

18. OH FUCKING BULLSHIT

Read:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=914131&mesg_id=914131

[stop the bleeding]

25. yep I concur

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=914297&mesg_id=914660

[Joe Fields]

19. One year, two years, five years, ten years, two weeks......

NOBODY HAS ANY EARTHLY IDEA, just how long it will be before Iran can build A SINGLE bomb.

The truth is that they will be able to buy one much quicker than that.

[yodermon]

21. If Iran explodes a nuke somewhere

It will be one that was smuggled to them via AQ Kahns network, thanks to the outing of Valerie Plame and Brewster-Jennings, who were about in the business of breaking up such networks.

IOW, the Bush/neocon cabal and their counterparts in Iran are conspiring to have a nuke exchange in some form or fashion.

[stop the bleeding]

24. ok - 16 days or 10 years? - I'm calling BULLSHIT

164 centrifuges vs 50(K)

I have heard different reports on this and what I have been able to piece together is this.

operating and producing 164 centrifuges is much much easier than producing and maintaining 50(K) - 130(K) also the Uranium they have claimed to enrich is low grade, they would have to be able to enrich high grade, the technology is the same but the process isn't. Lastly once you have enough high grade uranium then you have to work on the next phase which is called weaponization.

16 days - I doubt it, but then again we really don't know how long Iran has been at it or really where they are at.

The IAEA is aware and inspecting the 164 centrifuge facility, but Iran has basically shut the rest of the Country down for further inspections.


This is a scare tactic IMO

[Blue_In_AK]

26. 10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America,

the one about Albert Einstein's letter to Franklin Roosevelt warning that America should accelerate production of the atomic bomb because Germany was on the verge of having one -- after the war, after the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it was learned that by the end of the war Germany was probably still several years away from developing a nuclear weapon. The US had the dubious distinction of being the first to unleash this horrible power - to the ultimate dismay of many who worked on the Manhattan project, including Einstein who regretted ever pushing this idea.

Why are we always so quick to jump the gun? (From this series, it's clear that paranoia and preemptive destruction has always been our modus operandi from the earliest days of the Mystic massacre through the "Manifest Destiny" push westward wiping out everyone in our path, through nuclear destruction of Japanese cities, and now to Iraq and Iran.) Sometimes I am ashamed to be an American.

[npincus]

27. the MSM is at it again! Boost the Republican PIGS for 2006.

War! War! War! Vote Republican.

[hootinholler]

28. What FearMongering!

if it goes ahead with plans to install thousands of centrifuges ... Using those 50,000 centrifuges they could produce enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon in 16 days

Um how many years will it take to install 50K centrifuges?

FMH, they're gonna do it.

-Hoot

[paparush]

29. 16 days will put us into the New Moon..dark moon = US bombers fly..

Historically, we like to launch airstrikes during the darkness of the new moon.

[guinivere]

33. I heard it would be at least 5 to 10 years before they

could make a bomb.

Who knows if this enriched uranium story is even true. I wonder if it isn't another wmd type lie.

[walldude]

36. Brilliant piece of propaganda

if you bother to read the story it says in 16 days "IF they go ahead with plans to install centrifuges". Since the neos know their base won't read past the headlines they managed to convince, in one shot, their base that we are about to get nuked. I really thought that Sy Hersh's piece was a little over the top and I didn't think that administration would dare drop a nuke. Guess they are even crazier than I thought. They are gearing up... WWIII here we come.

[SeattleRob]

37. Fear - That's what they want!

That's all they have going for them.


Check out Talking Points Memo on this Bullshit article:

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2006_04_09.php#008209

[enki23]

40. what a load of shit

if they had all those centrifuges instantaneously up and running, already had all the necessary raw materials, if their time estimates were correct, and if they had absolutely all the technology at hand to instantly transform it into a nuclear weapon, they would be...

further behind than north fucking korea.

[JHB]

43. "Iran Could Produce Glowing Mickey Mouse Watches in 16 Days"

with apologies to Will Pitt

[xultar]

44. HYPE...the IAEA says they are about 2 yrs away.