Play Us Again, Iran

Whatever it is that Iran believes is the purpose of the interim nuclear deal with the West, it sure isn't for the purpose of ending Iran's nuclear ambitions, as we claim.

If the interim deal that freezes Iran's nuclear efforts in place is just a staging ground for a nuclear-free Iran, why is Iran wasting resources on strengthening nuclear infrastructure now?

As Iran and world powers negotiate arrangements to implement the Joint Plan of Action, a six-month interim nuclear deal announced in Geneva on November 24, 2013, Iran has pushed ahead with efforts to enhance its technical capability to enrich uranium.

Iran continues not only to research and build second-generation centrifuges that can enrich uranium more efficiently, but also is testing what appear to be even more advanced third-generation centrifuges.

So what is it? Is our sanctions relief under the interim agreement insignificant as the Obama administration claims--meaning Iran is wasting scarce resources on a capability that they'll get rid of? Or is sanctions relief so significant that Iran can afford to waste resources in an agreement that shuts down Iran's nuclear program?

Iran will go nuclear. Maybe not today. And maybe not tomorrow.

But the Joint Action Plan is just a means to allow us to pretend that Iran isn't going nuclear until the morning we wake up to an announced Iranian nuclear capability and we express our shock, shock that gambling nuclear proliferation was going on here.

Hey, we'll always have Geneva.

Have a super sparkly day.