President Bush's saber-rattling over Iran's nuclear threat has been alarming, as it should be. Reports indicate that the United States has discussed military intervention, including pre-emptive air strikes.

That's frightening, particularly with our troops stretched so thin. But equally as unnerving is the thought of a nuclear Iran. Any option of Iran developing a nuclear arsenal in the tinderbox that is the Middle East must be extinguished.

Bush's tough talk may be intended primarily for Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's consumption, and perhaps just part of the high-risk gamesmanship.

The danger, of course, with the escalating rhetoric is that it could spiral out of control.

Case in point: A day after Bush said one of his goals was to block Iran from enriching uranium, Iran announced its scientists had done just that.

It's a troubling development, even though the small amounts of uranium are similar to what Iran has produced in past experiments and are not enough to make a nuclear weapon, for now.

Still, it was Iran's message to the world that it's firmly on the nuclear path, and there's no going back.

The developments underscore the need for the United States to steer clear of the jingoistic tone the president set earlier and focus more on a diplomatic resolution.

Diplomacy, while a slow process, can still work to make Iran act responsibly.

This week, Iran welcomed five U.N. weapons inspectors to visit uranium enrichment and reprocessing plants. Mohammed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, arrives later this week. The global community must insist on ongoing inspections to assure that Iran's enrichment program is used only for nuclear energy, not for nuclear weaponry. If it persists, U.N. sanctions may be the answer.

But if diplomacy is to succeed, the Bush administration would be wise to stand down and cool the rhetoric. That's the best path to a peaceful solution in this delicate matter.