What a coincidence!

"In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way." Franklin D. Roosevelt

Coincidence, serendipity, and seriality - as described by the coincidence collector Paul Kammerer - do not explain politics. Nor do they explain the media.

Several articles were published regarding an earthquake that hit Iran on October 5 and theories as to whether that was actually a nuclear test run by Iran. An earthquake, measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale, was recorded in Aradan County in Semnan Province. The timing of the seismic activity and the location "made people link it to Iran's nuclear programme and ask if the Islamic country was close to getting its own nuclear weapon" as per media articles. Although earthquakes are normal in that geographical area, the timing of the natural phenomena was put at doubt by a skeptic, conspiratorial, and weary media coverage.

CIA Director William Burns said yesterday that there was no evidence that Iran has decided to build a nuclear weapon. However, he also said that Iran only needs one week to amass enough highly enriched uranium to make a nuclear bomb. The nuclear threat - coupled with the ideological one - that Iran poses in the region is not news. Although the US is treading carefully and Israel following suit, as far as the nuclear issue is concerned, both governments will start crying wolf soon.

At a time when the US is calling for ceasefire and containing escalations, it does not want to further implicate itself or Israel in the destruction of the region. Instead, and similar to what happened in Iraq over 20 years ago, the fears that were unsubstantiated will suddenly become merited owing to cleverly and patiently weaved messaging in international media outlets. Iran is supporting all of its proxies in the region and is adamant to press through a programme that has been questioned from the outset. An act against the regime is not only justified, but necessary. It is a question of time before it is fully embraced.

Israel's former premier is calling for striking Iran's nuclear sites. He sees the opportunity as ideal, as one more aggression against a nuclear fanatic land would be dwarfed against the atrocities committed in the region. The current Israeli most likely agrees behind closed doors, and a US government - whichever one is elected - will also probably agree. It is the role of the media to make us agree, and forget that coincidences in politics do not happen.

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