Back in the summer, during the Israeli war on Lebanon, I noticed that TNR ran a Leon-penned editorial that asked, "Will the West finally get ruthlessly serious about Iran?" Stunned, I went into the office of a colleague at TNR and said that the magazine was laying the editorial groundwork for endorsing a future military action against Iran. This colleague, whose judgment I continue to respect, called me a paranoiac and told me not to bother him the next time I wanted to grasp at straws for my conspiracy theories. It was disappointing, but I agreed.

Via Matt, I see that it took about six months. Marty promises that in the next issue or so, "we are running an article by Oren and Yossi Klein Halevi on Iran's nuclear capacity, and what should be done about it." Neither Oren nor Yossi have any particular expertise on nuclear weapons. They do have a history of urging wars on Israel and the United States, and of conflating the national interests of the two countries. Frank, I know I'm not your favorite person, but for God's sake, ask yourself: Is this is a responsible thing to run? Have you already begun writing the apology, slated to run in 2011, for endorsing the Iran War?