Iran War

[The Brain]

I pity future historians who need to study this crap.

[Sheilbh]

We live in bizarre times.

I feel like this also happened in his first term (obviously in a less serious context).

As a total aside, I did enjoy this unnecessarily dramatic the White House photographer shot of the Easter Bunny:


Admittedly it was probably a bit of a dark night of the soul for Marco Rubio facing the latest humiliation.

Actually, Zanza's point was it doesn't work for a while either because the customers for the oil are on the other side of the fucking planet.

Right which is why, as I say, when I mentioned pipelines I'd assume through Oman or Saudi. Zanza did go to mention the other industrial aspects of oil and gas and in the Gulf.

It's hard to keep up with the volume and diversity(!) of proposed and actual war crimes at this point coming out of our government.

I genuinely wonder about the possibility of him launching a nuke.

The Iranians responded to Trump's infrastructure plan by blowing up the Sabic petrochemical plant in Saudi. No biggie, just 10% of the world's oil output going offline.

Yeah I think there's a genuine challenge for Iran on this. The US and Israel (and a lot of these are Israeli strikes, such as against Sharif University) are clearly targeting widespread infrastructure that makes Iran a regional power and that they have built to establish that power as a highly sanctioned country. Bridges, refineries, universities, steel mills (for example, Mobarakeh Steel Company produces more steel than the entire UK or Thyssen Krupp).

Iran has a really powerful tool in controlling the Strait to restore deterrence but the longer this goes on the more there will be strikes (across the country - even the East is now getting hit pretty regularly) that are destroying its base. Even if there's a post-war scenario where Iran is far more able to sell its own fossil fuels and able to extract a toll from the Strait that would still be a devastated country (especially for the regime moving from a rally round the flag period where they're defying foreign assault).

So far Iran has escalated on a step-by-step basis - a desalination plant was hit, they attacked one in Bahrain; energy infrastructure was hit, they punched back in the Gulf. Given the direction of travel of American rhetoric and strikes by the US and Israel - I think there's probably an argument for Iran to escalate pretty significantly now, in advance of those threats. It feels like there could be an opportunity for Iran to escalate more strongly now by attacking, say, energy infrastructure across the region in advance in the hope of changing the pattern now which is rope-a-dope with the significant longer term deterrent of the Strait.

[Baron von Schtinkenbutt]

Nobody except Tamas, Zanza, me, Bob and that is just a few of the posts.

Yes, I was being facetious.

I took that as being directed at Bauer, but playing off you.

[frunk]

I pity future historians who need to study this crap.

They seem cool with studying Caligula.  With time the pain and stupidity involved isn't as sharp.

[Tamas]

The American President is dropping F bombs and praising Allah on Easter Sunday, while the Islamic Republic of Iran is responding with Lego-themed hip hop diss track videos.

Whatever is running the simulation we are all in is trolling us hard.

It's going to be embarrassing to die in a global thermonuclear war started this way.

[HVC]

I pity future historians who need to study this crap.

Nah, historians always love a crazy king.

[crazy canuck]

Nobody except Tamas, Zanza, me, Bob and that is just a few of the posts.

It's hard to keep up with the volume and diversity(!) of proposed and actual war crimes at this point coming out of our government.

Very true

[Jacob]

Melania and the Easter bunny have the same confused look on their faces.

They probably have the same plastic surgeon

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Melania and the Easter bunny have the same confused look on their faces.

They probably have the same plastic surgeon

Or they went to the same island

[Bauer]

Nobody except Tamas, Zanza, me, Bob and that is just a few of the posts.

Yes, I was being facetious.

I took that as being directed at Bauer, but playing off you.

Should have clarified I was referring to a low response from media/people in general.  It seems like a much bigger deal to me to have a president openly talking about and threatening to bomb civilian targets.

But that just seems to be where we are now, exhausted and not sure how to deal with this guy.

[Darth Wagtaros]

The lawmakers and the party leaderships know how to deal with him. They lack the will to do so. 

[mongers]

I genuinely wonder about the possibility of him launching a nuke.

Yes, I too have been thinking that isn't an impossibility now.

And who in the WH would stop him?

Maybe a fair few generals/admirals resign rather than do it, but he'll soon find a willing 'warrior'.

[Grey Fox]

If he doesn't TACO out and actually has a real plan (big IFs), Iran is getting nuked tonight.

[Zanza]

The lawmakers and the party leaderships know how to deal with him. They lack the will to do so.

They are complicit.

[Baron von Schtinkenbutt]

Should have clarified I was referring to a low response from media/people in general.  It seems like a much bigger deal to me to have a president openly talking about and threatening to bomb civilian targets.

But that just seems to be where we are now, exhausted and not sure how to deal with this guy.

I very much agree with you there.  If W or Obama said even a quarter of what Lord TACO of Orange has said huge numbers of people would be screaming bloody murder.  I think he has, unfortunately and terrifyingly, shifted the Overton window.  It's really disappointing, even disturbing, that even large, respected news outlets like the New York Times have just sorta gone along with it.