Who's our friend: Iran or Saudi Arabia?

Swedish Meatballs Confidential: Unintended Consequence?

Which country should we threaten to attack?

Iran: supports the al-Maliki government in Iraq. Wants to see a stable Iraq on its borders.

That new narrative [that Iran is the enemy] threatens to obscure the bigger picture of Iranian policy toward Iraq, widely recognized by regional specialists. Iran's strategic interests in Iraq are far more compatible with those of the United States than those of the Sunni regimes in the region with which the US has aligned itself.

Contrary to the official narrative, Iranian support for Shi'ites is not aimed at destabilizing the country but does serve a rational Iranian desire to maximize its alliances with Iraqi Shi'ite factions, in the view of specialists on Iranian policy and on the security of the Persian Gulf region.

(Asia Times, courtesy of Swedish Meatballs, which also has, be warned, racy pictures for your prurient pleasure.)

Saudi Arabia: wants to see the al-Maliki government fall. Supports Sunni groups with cash and fighters (45 percent of foreign fighters in Iraq are Saudi Arabian)

For more on the much larger role Saudis play in terrorist activities compared to Iran, see A Second Look at the Saudis. I can't vouch for the accuracy of the author's statements, but the links s/he cites are authentic.