David Ignatius, who always sounds well-connected though not necessarily prescienct, writes in today's WashPost"Saber rattling from the Bush White House may seem almost routine, but pay attention to the comment last week by Adm. Michael G. Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 'Iran is not going away. We need to be strong and really in the deterrent mode, to not be very predictable.'"The risk of a U.S.-Iranian confrontation is growing in part because Saudi Arabia and other U.S. allies in the Middle East are so eager for it. 'Behind closed doors, we are praying that the Iranians will make a mistake so that you will have a reason to attack,' one Saudi told me this week. Another prominent Arab official said he hopes the United States will strike Iranian training camps just over the border from Iraq."I wonder if this is the price for bringing down oil prices?Read the whole column here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/07/AR2008050703189.htmlUpdate: This informative post about part of the origins of the obliterate Iran policy of Hillary Clinton by Gary Sick is worth a read.Guest Op-Ed: More on Hillary Clinton and Obliterating IranLink: http://www.juancole.com/2008/05/sick-guest-op-ed-more-on-hillary.html