... at Truth Social.
Meanwhile, when I look at the NYT, the top stories are all centered on the price of oil.
March 12, 2026
"The United States is the largest Oil Producer in the World, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money. BUT..."
"... of far greater interest and importance to me, as President, is stoping an evil Empire, Iran, from having Nuclear Weapons, and destroying the Middle East and, indeed, the World. I won’t ever let that happen! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP"
... at Truth Social.
... at Truth Social.
Posts
154 comments:
Yeah gloom and doom and look at what the bad orange man has done. That's the narrative of these anklebiters.
Could be the start of the virtuous cycle of bringing our industry home. Higher prices, but paid by Americans, to Americans. CC, JSM
Bombing them won't remove the nuclear material they already have. Last year they told us the bombing solved the problem, yet a year later they were 'a week away'.
Without seizing that material, this is just a big show.
The media can’t come right out and say they’d rather a brutal destabilizing regime survive than see Trump get credit for pulling it down, so they cloak their terror-advocacy under the guise of caring for poor Americans.
The New York Times seizes on rising oil prices as midterm elections near, pouncing on an opportunity to increase voter anger.
The question is who is ‘We’ in that sentence? Regular Americans or oil execs / companies?
Yeah, I remember all the articles on the price of gas when Biden was president, and Obama too. Let's not forget how they SWOONED when Obama said the price of oil and gas would NECESSARILY skyrocket.
At least we dont have to hear how smart and cunning Joey is.
Who is the evil empire?
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/38389822/israel-hacked-iran-traffic-cams-ayatollah-khamenei/
We had hacked their traffic cameras and knew where the Ayatollah's bodyguards parked their cars, but we didn't know where senior Republican Guard officers dropped their children off at school?
The latest claim is that we bombed the school used by senior Republican Guard officers to educate their daughters because we had "old information" about the building, yet the article above brags:
"An Israeli intelligence official told the FT: 'We knew Tehran like we know Jerusalem.'"
Who gave us the target, which we double tapped, the second time spraying the remaining fuel from the Tomahawk to create a huge fireball? No doubt the target was provided by Mossad, and these stories about "old data" and "AI" are just cover stories.
Until you understand how utterly pathologically sociopathic these guys running our country are, you can't understand their actions.
Exactly, Matt. The American consumer pays for this increase with the rise in gas prices, the price increase for anything transported and airfare costs.
I was informed by the very highest of authorities that Iran's nuclear program was totally degraded by Midnight Hammer.
The biggest problem with "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" is that it's so "unconditional"...very little weaseling can be done with that word.
Shouldn't the NYT be celebrating higher oil prices? I thought liberals believed that to be a very good thing.
Imtay, no one cares about dead IRGC daughters. The regime sent their Hamas minions to kidnap, rape, and kill peaceful farm families. They forfeited their own families’ safety. Name a norm of interaction between nation states, and the mullah regime has repeatedly violated that norm. They can no longer claim those norms as protection. If they want their children to live, they can surrender.
It frustrates me that Trump and Hegseth won’t just say that. Over half the country would agree with them.
imtay: We had hacked their traffic cameras and knew where the Ayatollah's bodyguards parked their cars, but we didn't know where senior Republican Guard officers dropped their children off at school?
The latest claim is that we bombed the school used by senior Republican Guard officers to educate their daughters because we had "old information" about the building, yet the article above brags:
"An Israeli intelligence official told the FT: 'We knew Tehran like we know Jerusalem.'"
The school is located in Minab, about 1,000 miles from Tehran.
Minab is adjacent to the Straits of Hormuz.
There is nothing pathological about this — it is a tragic mistake.
Looking forward to you retracting your comment.
They didn't think through the Hormuz problem did they
Iran is now an "Empire"? Derp.
Biden-brain.
We're also building out refining capacity. Make oil productive again.
imTay: “Until you understand how utterly pathologically sociopathic these guys running our country are, you can't understand their actions.” Absolutely right, Shabaz! The better course of action would have been to allow the lunatic mullahs to get ICBMs and nukes to turn their 40 year old slogan, “Death to America” into reality and to continue funding terrorism by murderous Islamist worldwide. /s
The evidence supports that the school suffered an explosion that was conceived and evolved internally.
We burned to death six figures of German and Japanese civilians, including children. If we did that to civilized countries, do you think we will shed a single tear over a hundred half grown wogs? Think again, muzzie. Surrender if you want your children to live. CC, JSM
And, by the way, Trump (who *always* tells the truth) swore to us that Iran's nuclear program was "totally obliterated" in the last campaign.
It's like Jason from the movies. You can never actually kill the Iranian Nuclear Program (TM). It always comes back to life when Israel needs an excuse to attack.
Tomorrow is Friday the 13th. Be careful out there campers!
@Hey Skipper: There is nothing pathological about this — it is a tragic mistake.
Or as with the Palestinians in Gaza, psychopaths in power placed a school on top of a critical military facility. Call the school girls human shields, call them de facto hostages, or call them neo-Spartans.
So the Iranian regime has been infiltrated by Just Stop Oil.
Are any of those NYT stories condemning [alleged] "price gouging" by oil providers/retailers?
Because whenever oil prices increase under Dems, that's what gets highlighted.
this was something i've wondered about For My Whole Life.
For My Whole Life, the media has SAID, that The Reason WHY we were in the Mid East, etc; was "OIL".
They ALWAYS made it as if "BIG OIL" was forcing the USA to attack countries to keep oil prices down..
This was SUPPOSED TO sound good
IF BIG OIL was behind it all. wouldn't they be HELPING OPEC?
i mean.. Wouldn't they?
Maybe i'm confused,
maybe some jaqoff can stop dreaming of pedo Scott Ritter,
and explain it to US?
Just google "SAVAK" and "Mossad" if you want to know what an evil government in Iran looked like. Netanyahu dreams of restoring the brutal regime of the Shah, which was known for torturing dissidents, and the SAVAK was trained by Israel, and Iran was run by Israel, from 1953, when we installed a dictator in place of their democratically elected prime minister, to 1979, when the Iranian people threw them out and they restored their sovereignty.
Now we are talking about replacing their democratically elected government with the Shah's son and re-installing his brutal regime. The Ayatollah did not run Iran, he was like a one man Supreme Court based on Islamic law, but if you get all of your news from Fox or CNN or CBS or the New York Times or the Washington Post, it's likely that you did not know that.
Right now, availability is much more important than price. If you don’t produce your own supply or not enough supply, it doesn’t matter what the price is. China and the far east have a problem.
I am not buying that Israel did not know where senior officers of the Republican Guard's navy sent their daughters to school. Before you send a thermobaric weapon into a building that you see crawling with people from a loitering Tomahawk's camera, a simple google search might have been called for.
But they are just Iranians? Who cares? Haven't you heard all of the propaganda? They all deserve to be engulfed in flames by American weapons, fired by American sailors!
I haven’t even purchased gas for my car since this conflict started.
Also, if you don’t remember or know the significance of odd even license plate numbers, you’re too young to understand.
I am so fucking disappointed in Trump, it's like he watches Hannity and trusts him.
Has Jaq been kicked off? It seems like ImTay is the newest member who wants to see radical Islam beat western civ ...
Anyhoo from Ace:
Confirmed: Begun, the Drone Wars Have
As I guessed, the new phase of the war is anti-personnel strikes on street enforcers and IRGC goons not with 1,000 pound bombs but with hand-grenade-sized charges delivered by drones.
David Strom reports on the Israeli drones now blowing up Basij (volunteer morality police/skull-crackers) checkpoints.
dronestrikesbasig.jpg
Apparently this ran with video supposedly showing the strike, but the video was from March 2nd. Open Source Intelligence says that although the video was fake (or repurposed from an earlier strike), the report is real.
The drones loiter for hours looking for targets to hit.
Translation:
Loitering munition-type drones now appear to be operating over Tehran.
More than 10 checkpoints, as well as several mobile IRGC (IRGC) military vehicles in different areas of the city, are said to have been targeted and destroyed by drone strikes. (@etelaf10)
This type of weapon can patrol for a long time over an area, wait for targets to appear, and then strike. This is all the easier when enemy air defense systems are degraded or neutralized.
This could facilitate the emergence of a broader national uprising, by weakening the regime's control at the street level.
In addition to just killing Basij and IRGC troops, these hunter-killers will also force Iranian street troops to break up into smaller groups, in order to make themselves less conspicuous and attractive targets. But moving in smaller groups will open them up to attacks by lightly-armed counter-revolutionary irregulars, who hopefully will enter the fight by the end of the month.
I sure hope someone's smuggling in small arms, radios, and grenades to the locals.
BTW, Hegseth cancelled a program which required that all targets of American weapons be vetted, so I am sure that he is going to be answering some questions about that in the coming Democratic Congress, or maybe not, if Israel is involved, the Democrats will be "I know nothink! I see nothink!"
This place has turned into such a slum since the bloodthirsty, war loving Istapunditeers have taken over. I guess I can't say "bloodthirsty" because that assumes that you would get off of your couch and join the fight.
..spraying the remaining fuel from the Tomahawk to create a huge fireball..
guessing you're talking about a huge fireball the size of a small fireball?
For the Block IV Tactical Tomahawk (current main production version), one detailed technical manual reference breaks it down with 455 lb in the forward section + **436 lb** in midbody tanks (lower midbody ~357 lb, gravity tank ~64 lb, hopper ~15 lb), suggesting a total around 900+ lb (roughly 100–110 US gallons, given JP-10's density of ~0.94 g/cm³).
Oil prices are Iran's only leverage. Since the US hasn't sorted the Straights of Hormones yet, Libturds in the DNC MSM Davos are hammering Trump.
Saw lots of references for TACO today, the latest talking point. It stands for Trump Always Chickens Out. They site the tariff, Greenland DOGE and ICE pullbacks as examples.
Trump will fail if he decides to settle before the oil is freely flowing again. Will he flinch?
imtay: I am not buying that Israel did not know where senior officers of the Republican Guard's navy sent their daughters to school.
What you should buy is that you got a very fundamental, and easily discovered, fact wrong that completely vitiates your comment.
Another easily discovered fact is that, presuming it was a Tomahawk that hit the school, is that this has nothing to do with Israel.
The Air Tasking Order for the opening days of Epic Fury was huge. That it had only one significant error is pretty amazing.
But they are just Iranians? Who cares? Haven't you heard all of the propaganda? They all deserve to be engulfed in flames by American weapons, fired by American sailors!
Any examples, or just more frothing?
In March, 2022, Joe Biden released 180 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the largest release in American history, and was widely criticized for doing so. Yesterday, Donald Trump released 172 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve because of his war with Iran, less than 8 months before the mid-term elections.
New boss -- same as the old boss.
@lonejustice on Biden vs. Trump and the SPR
Biden had to crawl back from walking the plank given the combo of his no-new-oil green policies plus the rampant inflation he sparked with COVID mania and his numerous handouts.
Trump took a caculated risk given increasing oil availability in Venezuela, his lack of concern about Russia selling more oil (Trump wrote of Ukraine long ago), and US output.
Biden and Obama expressly sought to limit global growth through oil production restrictions (i.e., green), while Trump's actions will be at most an economic speed bump.
Meanwhile, when I look at the NYT, the top stories are all centered on the price of oil.
And they were all in favor of the higher prices, to help avoid climate change, right?
Right?
I mean, Democrats LOVE higher oil prices, that's why they cut US production whenever they have the power to, so they must love the increase in prices, right?
lonejustice said...
In March, 2022, Joe Biden released 180 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the largest release in American history, and was widely criticized for doing so. Yesterday, Donald Trump released 172 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve because of his war with Iran, less than 8 months before the mid-term elections.
The nice thing about being a Republican is that I dont' have to be a lying sack of shit.
The "Biden" Admin cur US oil and gas production, and then released oil from the SPR, NOT because of any "international emergency", but for purely short term political reasons.
The Trump Admin is finally fighting back in Iran's war on America, and so tapped the SPR for the reason it exists: to level out supply during times of international crisis.
Only a completely worthless shit for brains or lying dirtbag would pretend the two actions have anything in common
Mark said...
Bombing them won't remove the nuclear material they already have.
That's right, Mark. Which is why unconditional surrender is required, and / or the overthrow of the current rulers.
But thank you for showing you understand the Trump is doing the right things here.
You won't admit it, because you're partisan scum, but at least you know it
Context and circumstances matter, but lonejustice evidently isn't intelligent enough to grasp them.
NYT needs to pounce on the price spike before it disappears…
Greg, you will never get to unconditional surrender without boots on the ground.
I for one am tired of Republican getting us into middle east wars.
imTay said...
Just google "SAVAK" and "Mossad" if you want to know what an evil government in Iran looked like.
The Iranian gov't that imTay loves murdered 30k+ protesters going into hospitals to find proper who they'd injured so they could finish murdering them.
The Iranian gov't that imTay loves rapes girls before executing them as a matter of state policy. Beats, rapes, tortures, and murders women for not properly coving their hair when out in public.
But according the imTay, it was SAVAK that was "evil".
imTay, it would make me very happy if you had done to you all the things that have been done to women by the Mad Mullahs of Iran, because unlike those women, you deserve to have it happen to you.
Israel has had nuclear weapons for 60 years, and does not seem to have destroyed the World with them. Of course, the Iranian government is controlled by religious fanatics who mistakenly believe they are following commandments from God, whereas the Israelis are simply operating on their entirely unobjectionable belief that God loves them more than He loves anyone else, and intends that they occupy most of the Levant. And kill anyone who opposes them.
So it's completely different!
Mark: Greg, you will never get to unconditional surrender without boots on the ground.
I for one am tired of Republican getting us into middle east wars.
I can't help but think of this.
Mark said...
Greg, you will never get to unconditional surrender without boots on the ground.
Yes, we will.
We will get unconditional surrender by using drones to kill their "people suppression" troops, and keep on killing them until the people rise up and kill the government for us.
But Mark, we won't get that enriched uranium without "boots not eh ground" or else unconditional surrender.
So, either you are a psychotic piece of shit who wants the Mad Mullahs of Iran to have nuclear weapons to go with their ballistic missiles, or you want Trump to drive this through until Iran no longer has any enriched uranium.
Trump isn't "getting us into this war", Iran got us into this war, because Iran has clearly established that we can not safely let them have nukes.
Oh, Mark, one other thing: given the state of play preceding Epic Fury, what would you have done?
Don't forget to take into account the regime's Sharia supremacist eschatology.
Funny, it's like the NYT is writing for people who drive.
Try the WSJ for the coverage of who benefits when oil,prices are high?
john mosby said...
"Imtay, no one cares about dead IRGC daughters."
Well. At least, it's clear that john mosby doesn't. I understand. Sometimes you just have to spray little girls with flaming rocket fuel. It's what God wants.
The NYT was never concerned about any price increases during Biden's years.
Low Point: The low occurred at the very beginning of the administration on January 20, 2021, when WTI was trading between $52.16 and $53.50 per barrel.
High Point: The peak was reached on March 8, 2022, when WTI hit $123.70 (often cited as $124) following Russia's invasion of Ukraine
Average price was $79 during Biden regime.
Ergo, prices go up and down.
Remind me, why is the US involved in this endless apocalyptic struggle between two lunatic theocracies? Oh, right, I remember. Because 3% of the US population owns a lot more than 3% of the US! Duh!
The regime sent their Hamas minions to kidnap, rape, and kill peaceful farm families. They forfeited their own families’ safety. Name a norm of interaction between nation states, and the mullah regime has repeatedly violated that norm. They can no longer claim those norms as protection. If they want their children to live, they can surrender.
Didn't your mom ever tell you that "two wrongs don't make a right"?
How can you argue that Iran and their proxies are evil for killing women and children is evil, yet if we do it, all is fair?
Bonus points if you can justify it from a Christian perspective.
the top stories are all centered on the price of oil.
Of course. Also lobster tails and steak, anything to get Trump.
Absolutely, I'm so happy to be making so much money, so much winning I just can't take it anymore?
We will get unconditional surrender by using drones to kill their "people suppression" troops, and keep on killing them until the people rise up and kill the government for us.
And then what? Have you (or more importantly the Administration) figured out what comes next after the Mullahs are thrown out? Civil War? Shah returns? Total Chaos?
The Kurds have already said "are you fucking kidding us?" when, apparently the CIA said go ahead and go into Iraq on the ground, we'll have your back.
Oh Freder, two wrongs don't make a right - but a great big second wrong stops the first guy from committing a third wrong. As for Christianity, please forgive me for cross-posting this from the Mojtaba thread:
Romans 13:1 et seq - ""Let every person be subject to the governing authorities....he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed,...for he is God’s servant for your good....for he does not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on the wrongdoer.""
Even St Paul, still living in two-digit years AD, recognized that sometimes you have to crush the enemies of civilization. CC, JSM
Saw lots of references for TACO today, the latest talking point. It stands for Trump Always Chickens Out. They site the tariff, Greenland DOGE and ICE pullbacks as examples.
Who are "They?" And are they really claiming TACO? Have "They" checked with Maduro? Or Khameini (Sr.)? Do they know that ICE is still operating in MN? Are they still getting USAID funding?
And if the mullahs occupy morally higher ground, why don't they surrender to stop the bloodshed? Even their martyred Hussain did that. CC, JSM
They could out-Gandhi Gandhi. Out-Mandela Mandela. Win the Nobel Peace Prize! But no. They won't. CC, JSM
Oh, and btw, the only time we and our allies got someone to "unconditionally surrender" was Germany in WWII, and that took millions (approaching 10 million) of boots on the ground. Heck, even Japan didn't unconditionally surrender (although it was close to unconditional).
Freder: "Civil War? Shah returns? Total Chaos?"
All excellent ideas, old boy! And all better than the status quo ante. And much better than larking about trying to nationbuild. Hit the wogs hard. And if they screw up again, hit them again, harder. CC, JSM
Jupiter said, "Remind me, why is the US involved in this endless apocalyptic struggle between two lunatic theocracies?"
"Because a bunch of squatters with odd languages and weird customs happen to be camping on top of OUR oil." - The CIA
Unconditional surrender and nationbuilding don't have to go together. You can get an unconditional surrender, break their stuff, and withdraw. We helped Germany and Japan rebuild because we saw a remnant of civilization there that we could work with. We could easily have just let them starve and watch Germany devolve into Germanic tribes fighting each other, while Japan went into another period of isolation under a de-facto shogunate.
Maybe we will see enough salvageable Persian civilization to work with. Or maybe they just lost their chance to be part of the community of civilized countries. CC, JSM
Totally agree JSM...so long as it's done with the minimum expenditure of our blood and our treasure possible.
None of those people are worth it.
This is known in psychology circles as a "f*cked-up coping mechanism”.
See also: make a lot of money FROM WHOM???
Oh right, the same people who paid all the tariffs!
Jupiter: "Sometimes you just have to spray little girls with flaming rocket fuel. It's what God wants."
You and I grew up in a prosperous country because American men sprayed German and Japanese little girls with napalm, thermite, white phosphorous, and other delightful incendiaries. Not to mention nukes. Now suddently it is convenient to be picky about which enemy nationals we kill? CC, JSM
The median American voter also cannot articulate a strategic objective in Iran, so Trump's incoherent management of the war may ironically make him more relatable.
The western pilots over Dresden reported that the smell of burning flesh was strong, as they dropped bombs and as the city center turned into a column of flames.
The Hiroshima museum has a sidewalk with a dark stain in the shape of a body.
Jupiter: "the Israelis are simply operating on their entirely unobjectionable belief that God loves them more than He loves anyone else, and intends that they occupy most of the Levant."
No, the Israelis are operating on the fact that even the most advanced civilization in Europe, where they had almost completely assimilated, woke up one day and decided to kill them all, and almost succeeded. So they gave up on trying to find safety in other peoples' countries, and took refuge in the closest thing they had to their own.
Notice the word 'god' occurred nowhere in that graf. CC, JSM
Dave gets it right. Oil prices have been much higher. Looked a moment ago and WTI was $95.
Biden cut the SPR reserves in half from 638 mmbbls to 347 mmbbls. None of the releases were for an emergency. All of it was used to buy votes for Democrats. Trump has only authorized a 172 mmbbls release, while he negotiated the rest of the IEA members to release 250 mmbbls from their reserves.
BTW, the UN Security Council voted unanimously (Russia and China abstained) to condemn Iran. That's more than can be asked from the TDS community in America.
Now do Bergen Belsen, Enigma
Keep the comparisons coming?
Nobody should be cheering the deaths of civilians
How stupid can you be. I get it that Trump cares more about the profits of oil companies than the pocketbooks of average citizens, but why advertise the fact. He’s losing it.
The Daily Mail is always 12 hours ahead. And Islamic terrorists just invaded the largest Reform Synagogue in the U.S. there. In Michigan. Active shooter or shooters still loose.
The NYT will probably have to pull an article about a butch wedding to squeeze this in by Saturday.
I'm still somehow not concerned that the Jewish Defense League will show up at my door.
Yeah they dont bother me, one wonders if this is one of whitmers special newcomers
So they gave up on trying to find safety in other peoples' countries, and took refuge in....
...their U.S. tax money.
Hey Jupiter and Freder, I have a new cause for you. His name is Oumar Ndiaye. Right up your alley, as it were.
Regretable reform are these co exist types who dont realize why Judaism matters
But they are just Iranians? Who cares? Haven't you heard all of the propaganda? They all deserve to be engulfed in flames by American weapons, fired by American sailors!
I listen to the other propaganda that the Iranians love Donald Trump and America so I will continue to believe that it was all a false flag operation perpetrated by the Mullahs. We are all just believing the most convenient thing that confirms our worldview, right? Am I doing this right?
The shooter threw a bomb like mandanis home boys
imTay said...
This place has turned into such a slum since the bloodthirsty, war loving Istapunditeers have taken over. I guess I can't say "bloodthirsty" because that assumes that you would get off of your couch and join the fight.
3/12/26, 11:30 AM
...
We've had an all-volunteer military for decades. It's the most powerful army in the history of the world. A draft I think would be fantastic for the country for social cohesion but if the function of the military is to destroy America's enemies, an all-volunteer army where people are dedicated to success and not looking to get out at the earliest possible date is far superior to a draft army.
Hey Skipper said...
imtay: I am not buying that Israel did not know where senior officers of the Republican Guard's navy sent their daughters to school.
What you should buy is that you got a very fundamental, and easily discovered, fact wrong that completely vitiates your comment.
Another easily discovered fact is that, presuming it was a Tomahawk that hit the school, is that this has nothing to do with Israel.
The Air Tasking Order for the opening days of Epic Fury was huge. That it had only one significant error is pretty amazing.
But they are just Iranians? Who cares? Haven't you heard all of the propaganda? They all deserve to be engulfed in flames by American weapons, fired by American sailors!
Any examples, or just more frothing?
3/12/26, 11:34 AM
...
This has probably been the most complicated beginning to war in the history of war, with the most moving parts and the most complicated parts.
The idea that - if this group of children were killed by American munitions - is the only error despite the massive number of moving parts - is frankly a miracle and extraordinary praise of the United States' and Israeli military.
@Keith, a draft would mean a civil war. We're already in a cold one right now. Millions would sooner deal with their traitorous neighbors right next door than mountain primitives half a world away. Europe's the same way.
Total misread of the room right now.
Some of our commenters are grateful for the death of those schoolgirls because it offers them a handle to rationalize their hate for Trump and all his works. I suspect that otherwise they wouldn't give any more of a shit about those girls than they do about the tens of thousands the Irani regime has killed.
lonejustice said...
In March, 2022, Joe Biden released 180 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the largest release in American history, and was widely criticized for doing so. Yesterday, Donald Trump released 172 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve because of his war with Iran, less than 8 months before the mid-term elections.
New boss -- same as the old boss.
3/12/26, 11:35 AM
...
I hear your argument. However Biden's administration worked as hard as they could to shut down oil extraction. We had increased oil only because they could not shut down private drilling. They shut down everything they could that was within their power.
Then prices went up and they said oh crap.
In contrast DJT is drill baby drill. He wants as much oil and gas as we can get. He wants oil as cheap as possible (more or less). When oil spikes because of the war it is consistent with his philosophy that he wants to lower its cost.
Sorry - enigma made my point but I didn't read it before I posted.
john mosby said...
Unconditional surrender and nationbuilding don't have to go together. You can get an unconditional surrender, break their stuff, and withdraw. We helped Germany and Japan rebuild because we saw a remnant of civilization there that we could work with. We could easily have just let them starve and watch Germany devolve into Germanic tribes fighting each other ...
Excellent points, john. Break things and withdraw is what we did to Germany in 1918, and the generation that fought in 1939-1945 saw what happened after that. It is good to point out though, as you did, that Germany had been a decently functioning proto-democracy for a while (the franchise was more universal in 1914 in Germany than it was in the UK). So what happened in 1945 and later was not so much an exercise in nationbuilding as it was providing local security for the German people to peacefully rebuild their physical and social infrastructure. It's this last point that many advocates for the old neo-con nationbuilding miss. The decapitation strategy somewhat assumes that the Iranians will be able to provide their own security structure, likely with the help from non-US forces.
Mark said...
Greg, you will never get to unconditional surrender without boots on the ground.
I for one am tired of Republican getting us into middle east wars.
3/12/26, 11:54 AM
...
Agree on boots on the ground. Doesn't have to be American boots. Ideally Iranian and Kurdish boots and hopefully we are dropping tons of AR's and ammunition for them.
It really seems like they thought this through. First take out air defense and air force and own the skies. Next take out drones and navy. Next take out nuclear facilities.
I think they acknowledge boots on the ground are necessary. Arm the Iranians and Kurds. But they can't fight against armor. So take out the armor, which seems to be happening now.
Soften the playground and take out IRGC/Basij. I am reading reports they have drones just floating in the skies waiting for those groups to amass and bombing them.
Finally consider that after enough punishment IRGC MIGHT walk away but ... Army may go after IRGC and express their will. IRGC/Army more likely to walk away if they aren't getting paid so ... they are going after their source of funding. How many IRGC are going to continue once their paychecks stop?
It really seems like they thought this through - assuming they are going to drop light weapons to the people after the armor is gone.
Imtay - re Savak - do you mean 50 years ago? Are you saying that ridding the Iranian people of their sadistic terror Islamists will result in installation of the old Savak from 50Y ago?
Are you seriously saying that?
Jupiter said...
Israel has had nuclear weapons for 60 years, and does not seem to have destroyed the World with them. Of course, the Iranian government is controlled by religious fanatics who mistakenly believe they are following commandments from God, whereas the Israelis are simply operating on their entirely unobjectionable belief that God loves them more than He loves anyone else, and intends that they occupy most of the Levant. And kill anyone who opposes them.
3/12/26, 12:02 PM
...
Although we don't know that they have them they probably have them. You came up with the important part before you concluded with something that doesn't make any sense.
Their nukes are obviously for self-defense. As you said ... they had them for SIXTY YEARS and there was never any concern by anyone in the world that they would use them (unless it looked like a murderous Islamic army would murder every one of them and destroy the nation).
So ... they had them for 60 years and there has never been a time anyone thought they would use them because they are defensive not offensive.
In contrast for 50Y the Islamists have sworn they would nuke Israel and the USA as soon as they have nuclear weapons. And every dollar of their economy is spent on a combination of obtaining nuclear weapons and sponsoring terrorism to murder innocent people and murder and torture Americans, including our soldiers.
I can explain it to you. I can't understand it for you.
Jupiter said...
Remind me, why is the US involved in this endless apocalyptic struggle between two lunatic theocracies? Oh, right, I remember. Because 3% of the US population owns a lot more than 3% of the US! Duh!
3/12/26, 12:10 PM
...
What lunatic theocracies? I only see one. If you are referring to Israel they are a parliamentary democracy. ALL they want is to be left alone. They want Muzzies NOT bombing their schools and cafes. They just want to be left alone and they want to leave the muzzies alone. They do NOT want to be in Gaza. They do NOT want to be in Ramallah.
But when the muzzies keep kidnapping their citizens, and murdering and raping their citizens, and burning alive their babies ...
Well no civilized country can ignore that.
The analogy given is if Tijuana were sending in missiles into our schools and cafes, and if TJ were building tunnels and kidnapping and torturing our citizens what would we do?
(We meaning a real President like DJT or RR. Not Biden and Obama)
It would be scorched earth. Everyone within 20 miles of the border dies. I'd be OK with that. Teach everyone a lesson.
Just try to imagine what we should do if we were in that situation. They are extremely restrained compared to what I would do if I were president.
10,000 Catholic a year, mostly women and children, murdered by Islamacists every year in Africa. Escape your notice?
RSM: "a draft would mean a civil war. We're already in a cold one right now. Millions would sooner deal with their traitorous neighbors right next door "
Not sure I follow your reasoning. Aren't the people who would submit to induction, the same people who agree with Trump? And also the same people who would deal with traitorous neighbors? They can't be in two places at once, can they?
And the people against the draft are likely not to qualify for military service, so they'd have no reason to fight violently against induction. And they are also the people who believe all the nonviolent kumbaya stuff.
Can you clarify? CC, JSM
Freder Frederson said...
The regime sent their Hamas minions to kidnap, rape, and kill peaceful farm families. They forfeited their own families’ safety. Name a norm of interaction between nation states, and the mullah regime has repeatedly violated that norm. They can no longer claim those norms as protection. If they want their children to live, they can surrender.
Didn't your mom ever tell you that "two wrongs don't make a right"?
How can you argue that Iran and their proxies are evil for killing women and children is evil, yet if we do it, all is fair?
Bonus points if you can justify it from a Christian perspective.
3/12/26, 12:12 PM
...
Just war theory. Iran is the aggressor. They are responsible for ALL noncombatant death and injury. Like Hamas. They kidnapped their citizens. Israel's responsibility is to rescue them. ALL Hamas had to do to stop the attack was return the stolen innocents. They chose not to. The proper question is why does Hamas hate their people so much that they could stop the war immediately and they chose not to?
Keith: "an all-volunteer army where people are dedicated to success and not looking to get out at the earliest possible date is far superior to a draft army."
Hmm, draftees looking to get out at the earliest possible date won WWs 1 and 2 as well as Korea. They also won Vietnam before the grand strategic leadership decided not to win. Draftees did all this in part because they didn't give a rat's ass about Queensbury rules or standing military doctrine - they improvised lethal solutions to battlefield problems.
In contrast, the professional military ('helped' of course by the grand strategic leadership) managed to fight 20 sequential one-year no-win wars in AFG and IRQ. In part because they were more afraid of the internal disciplinary process than they were of losing. And they were in no particular hurry to get home. CC, JSM
"Aren't the people who would submit to induction, the same people who agree with Trump?"
No.
"And also the same people who would deal with traitorous neighbors?"
No.
"They can't be in two places at once, can they?"
They won't be.
"And the people against the draft are likely not to qualify for military service, so they'd have no reason to fight violently against induction."
No.
"And they are also the people who believe all the nonviolent kumbaya stuff."
Hell no.
Freder Frederson said...
We will get unconditional surrender by using drones to kill their "people suppression" troops, and keep on killing them until the people rise up and kill the government for us.
And then what? Have you (or more importantly the Administration) figured out what comes next after the Mullahs are thrown out? Civil War? Shah returns? Total Chaos?
The Kurds have already said "are you fucking kidding us?" when, apparently the CIA said go ahead and go into Iraq on the ground, we'll have your back.
3/12/26, 12:31 PM
...
You have NO IDEA what the Kurds say. This is war. You can't trust anything anyone says. Only what you see. Trump is negotiating with the iranians and then ... the war starts? TRUMP LIED TO THOSE POOR ISLAMISTS! The left cries! How dumb. This is war. Deception is a critical part.
It's shocking how stupid people are.
Maybe the Kurds fight. Maybe not. What the NYT says is irrelevant to being informed. This is war. Deception is everywhere.
Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas said...
The median American voter also cannot articulate a strategic objective in Iran, so Trump's incoherent management of the war may ironically make him more relatable.
3/12/26, 12:53 PM
...
We've EXPLAINED it to you many many times. What we cannot do is understand it for you. Everyone has been quite consistent since the war began. That you ignore it is due to you ignorance, not to the absence of an explanation.
john mosby said...
Jupiter: "the Israelis are simply operating on their entirely unobjectionable belief that God loves them more than He loves anyone else, and intends that they occupy most of the Levant."
No, the Israelis are operating on the fact that even the most advanced civilization in Europe, where they had almost completely assimilated, woke up one day and decided to kill them all, and almost succeeded. So they gave up on trying to find safety in other peoples' countries, and took refuge in the closest thing they had to their own.
Notice the word 'god' occurred nowhere in that graf. CC, JSM
3/12/26, 1:02 PM
...
Indeed.
D.D. Driver said...
But they are just Iranians? Who cares? Haven't you heard all of the propaganda? They all deserve to be engulfed in flames by American weapons, fired by American sailors!
I listen to the other propaganda that the Iranians love Donald Trump and America so I will continue to believe that it was all a false flag operation perpetrated by the Mullahs. We are all just believing the most convenient thing that confirms our worldview, right? Am I doing this right?
3/12/26, 1:32 PM
...
So you do not live in LA or NY and do not know any Iranians here in USA. Got it. EVERY SINGLE Iranian I know - and I know over a hundred, probably less than 300 - is ecstatic about the possibility of freedom for their country. And you've certainly seen all the Iranian communities rallying for America and for freedom and doing the Trump dance. They LOVE Trump.
RSM, I am still not understanding you. So a draft is declared and a civil war breaks out - who's fighting whom, for what? CC, JSM
If Iran took out Sidwell Friends in order to demoralize the US elite, would that be kosher?
RideSpaceMountain said...
@Keith, a draft would mean a civil war. We're already in a cold one right now. Millions would sooner deal with their traitorous neighbors right next door than mountain primitives half a world away. Europe's the same way.
Total misread of the room right now.
3/12/26, 1:58 PM
...
No my point is I kind of wish we had mandatory service from the get go. I think it would do a lot for social cohesion. No exemptions. No rich kid exemptions. Like in Israel. You graduate high school you go to the army.
It's too late for us.
It would make a less effective army but would have helped with social cohesion. NOW I'd worry if we had mandatory service the Democrats would frag the patriots. I would not want them with weapons.
tcrosse said...
Some of our commenters are grateful for the death of those schoolgirls because it offers them a handle to rationalize their hate for Trump and all his works. I suspect that otherwise they wouldn't give any more of a shit about those girls than they do about the tens of thousands the Irani regime has killed.
3/12/26, 1:58 PM
...
Yeah it's weird how they never say anything about the 30,000 murdered innocent civilians. Like they never say anything about the 100's of 1000s murdered by Assad. And all the other Arab dictators.
It's almost like they have no principles but rather only care when they can use the news as a weapon.
john mosby said...
Keith: "an all-volunteer army where people are dedicated to success and not looking to get out at the earliest possible date is far superior to a draft army."
Hmm, draftees looking to get out at the earliest possible date won WWs 1 and 2 as well as Korea. They also won Vietnam before the grand strategic leadership decided not to win. Draftees did all this in part because they didn't give a rat's ass about Queensbury rules or standing military doctrine - they improvised lethal solutions to battlefield problems.
In contrast, the professional military ('helped' of course by the grand strategic leadership) managed to fight 20 sequential one-year no-win wars in AFG and IRQ. In part because they were more afraid of the internal disciplinary process than they were of losing. And they were in no particular hurry to get home. CC, JSM
3/12/26, 2:30 PM
...
True. My point was exclusively that an all-volunteer army where people stay to build skills is more deadly than a draft army where people are in basic for 6 w then shipped out. Better training. More experienced soldiers.
Jupiter said...
Remind me, why is the US involved in this endless apocalyptic struggle between two lunatic theocracies? Oh, right, I remember. Because 3% of the US population owns a lot more than 3% of the US! Duh!
Oh look! It's the leading wave of the Jew hating freak show!
The Mad Mullahs who rule over Iran threaten the US. Only brainless piles of shit whose hatred for Jews is so strong they'd rather see 1 million Christian Americans burned in Iranian nukes than see 1 Jewish life saved, support Iran getting nukes.
The others who support that just want the American Christians dead on its own (there ware running the Obama and Biden Admins).
Everyone else understands that the US is not safe if Iran gets nukes, and therefore it is unacceptable for Iran to get nukes.
And they also understand that "unacceptable" means just that, not "oh, it's unacceptable, except if the other option is Trump wins".
Side note: I don't believe that anyone has come even close to proving that the girls school was blown up by anything other than an errant Iranian missile.
But if it is a school for the children of Iranian Revolutionary Guard members, which is to say "American killing terrorists", then I couldn't possible care less who killed them, or how many died.
Once you step outside the laws of war yourself, they no longer protect you. At all.
yes, shit for brains, when it comes to the "laws of war". two wrongs DO make a "right". Because "reprisal", which is to say "murdering people in violation of the usual laws of war", is in fact the ONLY punishment for violating the laws of war.
So, cry harder for the terrorists if you wish, but no one sane cares
The NYT skips right over the glass is half full to fully empty. Then jumps to was never full and never will be.
NYT is now telling readers how vital oil is to the world economy. Soon, they will go back to preaching about how we need to replace it entirely by 2030.
Greg. You ar a vile disgusting piece of shit. How do you sleep at night?
“ The New York Times seizes on rising oil prices as midterm elections near, pouncing on an opportunity to increase voter anger.”
Oil is the new eggs. The name changes but the game is the same.
@JSM, I think people are assuming wrongly the conservative willingness to personally participate in this war. 100% of the left is resisting the draft, but I think half or more of "the right" would rather fight 100% of the left than fight Iran, up to and including resisting enlistment violently.
Subconsciously, I believe the country to be far more balkanized than people would like to publicly admit, but that doesn't scare me. Even the young can't see the sense in fighting enemies half a world away when so many of their enemies are literally right next door.
Keith said, "No my point is I kind of wish we had mandatory service from the get go. I think it would do a lot for social cohesion. No exemptions. No rich kid exemptions. Like in Israel. You graduate high school you go to the army."
When I was younger I thought so too. I don't anymore. Even in an era when people might've perceived that was possible it didn't make sense and turned out to be unworkable in the long-term.
"I think people are assuming wrongly the conservative willingness to personally participate in this war."
Addendum: Not just this war, but American foreign wars in general. Social trust is very low, if not broken.
FYI from HotAir: Now that air supremacy over Tehran is basically established, Israel has initiated a new phase in their systematic destruction of the regime: going after the IRGC troops patrolling Tehran, killing them systematically and precisely. Rather than dropping 500 to 2000 lb bombs, or even small diameter bombs that could inflict severe civilian casualties, they are apparently using loitering drones to pick off checkpoints and IRGC troops when they are out in the open.
RSM, thanks for elaborating. Can't say I agree with every part of it, but it does have logic to it.
My strongest disagreement is that a guy would have to be more libertarian than Rand Paul to resist the draft violently, and there just aren't that many people fitting that description.
In support of your scenario, I would admit that a lot of the Pretti/Good types would be sent out to disrupt the draft effort by attacking MEPS stations, blocking recruit buses, etc. CC, JSM
Quick war update from Tehran:
The IRGC held a meeting in a command center.
Israeli fighter jets RSVP’d.
Within seconds of identifying regime operatives inside the facility, the jets struck the building and eliminated everyone in it.
Problem solved.
Meanwhile dozens of Israeli aircraft conducted additional strike waves across Tehran and western Iran, hitting:
• IRGC Air Force command centers and situation rooms
• A command compound inside the IRGC’s Imam Hussein military university
• Ballistic missile storage and production facilities
• Sites used to target Israeli aircraft operating over Tehran
At the same time, Israel hit Internal Security and Basij bases along with a command center of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, the same organization responsible for spying on Iranian citizens and helping violently crush protests.
In other words:
The regime’s missile infrastructure, command network, and repression apparatus all took hits in the same round.
The campaign continues.
Tehran is learning that running a terror empire becomes difficult when your command centers keep disappearing.
Uhr: "How do you sleep at night?"
Probably like I do: in a home built with the resources gathered under the prosperity and security obtained by burning German and Japanese children. CC, JSM
Castigating America for war crimes is kind of like the stolen-land thing: if you really believe it, give up everything you have. Otherwise get off your high horse. CC, JSM
10,000 Catholic a year, mostly women and children, murdered by Islamacists every year in Africa.
Black Lives Matter, Inc. Unfortunately, black lives don't otherwise matter. Until now. Brown lives matter in Asia, too. Women, girls... Females... uh, the feminine gender selectively.
Yeah, we... humanity can do better.
"My strongest disagreement is that a guy would have to be more libertarian than Rand Paul to resist the draft violently."
I perceive a fatalism in today's youth expressing "you'd be dead either way" so take 2 for the price of 1.
"In support of your scenario, I would admit that a lot of the Pretti/Good types would be sent out to disrupt the draft effort by attacking MEPS stations, blocking recruit buses."
Pretti good...they're easier to find that way. If they bunch up they'd make great area targets for a draft-dodging kid with an FRT in his AR. Then it'd be several for the price of one.
off
i talico
x.com/BillMelugin_/status/2032194350944567742?
So is the old dominion shooter from sierra leone
I think compulsory service for high school graduates is a terrific idea, always have, but I've also thought that young people should be able to choose whether it's military service, as in other countries, or public service. Either way, it helps instill a sense of pride in country.
If you go to some of the state parks throughout this country, you will still see the sturdy, durable product of the CCC and other depression-era work programs. Almost 100 years old, and still serving the public ! Imagine what our national parks could look like, as well as other badly needed infrastructure, if an abundant young labor force was available.
That's funny, I thought that the far left wanted us to move away from using oil. I guess they just like cheap oil when they can use that issue to try and beat up Trump.
It's starting to look like Trump and his people didn't totally gameplan this out.
Remember when the left was running around with their hair on fire screaming about the price of eggs?
Yeah.
Let's check back in a couple months - after the price of oil is back to normal - to see what they're screaming about then.
https://nypost.com/2026/03/12/us-news/hero-rotc-cadet-fatally-stabbed-crazed-old-dominion-gunman-to-prevent-more-carnage/
LCDR Fish Loves Flicks on X: "@Oilfield_Rando @beyondreasdoubt @pspoole For a federal terrorism charge a drug reduction program doesn't make any sense....except under Biden DoJ" / X https://share.google/DtGt4I5fkqekr0YAU
Jordan Schachtel on X: "Previously shared pro Hezbollah material on his socials. Dearborn is a radicalization hotbed. Hope the feds are keeping more than a close eye on it. https://t.co/lAFebFCWeM" / X https://share.google/gwXa2ilw9Q7K869wB
China's Foreign Ministry has publicly condemned Iran's missile and drone barrages on Gulf nations, calling them "unacceptable attacks on civilians and non-military targets" and demanding an "immediate ceasefire."
https://x.com/i/status/2032035310469857619
Yeah you're breaking our ricebowls (mojjie or whoever is answering the phone)
I'm learning a lot of agricultural fertilizer is produced in the ME and shipped via the Strait of Hormuz. Primary customers are India, SE Asia & the Philippines, West Africa and Europe.
steve uhr said...
Greg. You ar a vile disgusting piece of shit. How do you sleep at night?
This from a piece of shit who supports the Mad Mullahs of Iran as the rape, torture, and murder women for not covering their hair in public.
The Scum who murdered tens of thousands of Iranians, male and female, old and young, for protesting.
But he claims to care about the lives of 150 children of the IRGC, and that THAT makes him a worthwhile and moral human being.
Steve, go fuck yourself, you worthless piece of shit
It's expensive to be led by the nose into a war that has zero benefits to you.
Don't they teach anything in emperor school nowadays?
We got our first peacetime draft in 1940. The power elite convinced us that we had to have it because of the threat of Nazi Germany. Then after WW II, its the "Evil Empire". Then came Vietnam.
And the power elite showed they couldn't be trusted with American draftee lives. They'd get us into a crazy no-win war without any exit strategy and keep it going for years, because only the poor, uneducated, and gullible got sent into war.
So, no Im completely against the draft. why give the crazy Neo-cons more American lives to play with in their never-ending wars?
We dont need a draft to defend America. We only need to one to do "Invade the world, invite the world".
BTW, you'll notice that very few our elite served in Vietnam. Trump, Clinton and Biden dodged the draft. Bush II was in the National Guard. Gore did serve, but only because he got a special deal, one-year tour as a journalist.
Mitt Romney - Mr. Tough Guy - spend the Vietnam war years in france eating pastry and telling people about the book of mormon (supposedly).
When my father was called up for active duty in 1940, he knew things were serious when the order said that officers were not to bring their sabers.
As with his tariff policy, Trump once again demonstrates that he is for U.S. producers but not U.S. consumers.
40% approval is going to be a high-water mark for the remainder of Trump's presidency.
Most people in the U.S. are not highly engaged in day-to-day political news, and the full economic impact of this war is not even close to being felt in the U.S. As those factors start to enter into the national consciousness, Trump's top line number is going to fall further.
Elected Republican officials are a lot more attuned to day-to-day changes, and they are starting to panic, because they understand that they are going to get absolutely wiped out in November. Something is going to give in a few months.
Trump is now gaslighting about gas prices, claiming that "higher gas prices are good for America!"—this after previously insisting he would lower them. He's lost the independents and the principled right; now we just have to figure out how to weather the next three years before the damage grows too severe.
Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas said...
It's expensive to be led by the nose into a war that has zero benefits to you.
Keeping Iran from nuking the US is a rather large benefit, shit for brains
A distinct parallel emerges in Trump's foreign policy missteps:
Escalating a trade war with China, only to discover that Beijing holds leverage through its near-monopoly on rare earth elements—critical for everything from electronics to defense systems.
Launching military action against Iran, only to realize that Tehran has enormous leverage by threatening (or effectively disrupting) the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of global oil flows—capable of cratering the world economy via skyrocketing energy prices and supply shocks.
In both cases, aggressive moves overlooked (or underestimated) the opponent's asymmetric strengths, revealing a deeper failure of strategic foresight and statecraft.
Nonexistence of statecraft, even.
I always believe everything Karoline Leavitt says. So, naturally, everything is under control and going exactly according to plan. ~ Neo-Con MAGA Greg (likely)
"Keeping Iran from nuking the US is a rather large benefit, shit for brains"
And it's more of a benefit than anyone (except the scammers) will get from running Learing Centers.
The democrat party and it's media outlets are a clear and present threat to this country. All they want is power.
"Mark said...
Bombing them won't remove the nuclear material they already have. Last year they told us the bombing solved the problem, yet a year later they were 'a week away'.
Without seizing that material, this is just a big show.
3/12/26, 10:37 AM"
So you are of the Obama/Biden give them billions side? Then when they have the nuke, whine about that some as well.
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