In view of recent threads and posts, I hope this thread/post is within bounds. If it isn't, my apology in advance...
I also think that the present situation with Iran and nukes is substantially different than the U.S./Soviet MAD stand-off. The basic assumption of MAD is that both parties are "rational," that is, that they won't kill most of their own nation and people to kill the other nation. IMHO Khrushchev and his generation saw war at its worst and knew that a nuclear war would be suicidal for both sides. Thus, the MAD theory worked. My fear is that the same thinking that motivates suicide bombers and justifies killing fellow muslims (thus making them "marytrs") may not restrain what the Soviet's called "adventurism." Without that vivid memory of the WWII eastern front and the death of 1/4 to 1/3 of the local population (in then Byelorussia, now Belarus). I do worry that the threats we are hearing from Iran should be taken at face value. In reading the Jerusalem Post on-line version, it seems that Israel is taking the threat seriously and has already begun practicing long range F-16 ops (to the western Med.) They have also reported that fallout shelters are a major growth industry in Israel. I suspect that the recent raid into Syria to destroy their nuclear reactor also was a warning to Iran.
Personally, I see the period of highest risk for a US and/or Israeli preemptive strike as being after the 2008 election (win or lose for either side) and before the inauguration of the new administration.
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"Better is the enemy of good enough."