The problem with a "nut"like Ahmadiejad is you never know if he's simply trying to whip up the faithfull or he really plans on a first strike against Israel.Israel has more than enough nukes to turn Iran into a wasteland.
IIRC, this "President" is the one who matched the face of a picture from the US Embassy hostage days. Insane or not, he clearly has decided who he likes and who he doesn't.
If Israel can destroy Iran ten times over, then the US can burn Iran all the way down to sub-continental basalt. No surprises all around on this point. The dedicated turbs like to self immolate, but when they do, from their point of view, they are still gaining something. I see no gain for themturning their own country into a cinder.
Then why all the trash talk, deliberately provocative? If the cinder ending holds no gain for Iran, then either they believe they can prevent it, or else they are only threatening it without intending to actually carry it out.
Obviously we have to be aware of and ready for the former possibility, but missing cues that point towards the second possibility would be just as costly a mistake as failing to plan for the former.
Can a third rate sandbox achieve superpower status by threatening nuclear armageddon and then backing off at the brink? Yes, Russia did, except we didn't know at the time that their military was third rate. We seem to like to have one "go to" enemy in our pockets at all times, does Iran realize this and are they applying for the job?
If so, and if we also need to keep in mind a possible intent to go all the way, how do we cover both bases?
Lots of answers there, but the big one is to quietly get ready and stay ready until the board looks right from our side of it, make our move, dispense with the trash, all the while keeping the issue on the back burner as much as possible.
Iran a superpower?
Uh-huh, sure, when pigs fly out my butt.