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friends in the region—Turkey, Jordan, Egypt—also mounts. The passage of time thereby adds to the political pressures working against us.

5. The climate in Saudi Arabia—the climate both meteorological and political, that is. The calendar adds to the necessity of a decision on the military option before the summer’s heat. Some will mutter about 1914 railway timetables, but the comparison is apt only if you think the difference between success and failure is of no significance in this case. As for Saudi internal vulnerability, it is odd that that argument is less heard now. In August the cautious folk were saying that a long-term U.S. troop presence in Saudi Arabia could be profoundly destabilizing; now the same folk say it is really no problem (since it’s better than a war). The original insight was probably better.

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friends in the region—Turkey, Jordan, Egypt—also mounts. The passage of time thereby adds to the political pressures working against us.

5. The climate in Saudi Arabia—the climate both meteorological and political, that is. The calendar adds to the necessity of a decision on the military option before the summer’s heat. Some will mutter about 1914 railway timetables, but the comparison is apt only if you think the difference between success and failure is of no significance in this case. As for Saudi internal vulnerability, it is odd that that argument is less heard now. In August the cautious folk were saying that a long-term U.S. troop presence in Saudi Arabia could be profoundly destabilizing; now the same folk say it is really no problem (since it’s better than a war). The original insight was probably better.