Last night Lt Col (Retired) Daniel Davis, one of many gamekeepers turned poacher to feature on this site, began his podcast with a whopping eleven and a half minutes given over to a press briefing by the 47th US President.
That the lies came thick, fast and facile goes without saying. Ditto that they were delivered with a mix of childish braggadocio and the kind of strawmannery Western corporate media used for years as it assured us Russia was losing its “war of conquest” in Ukraine – right up to the point where it became undeniable that Russia was doing nothing of the sort.
“We are the greatest … Iran’s Navy at the bottom of the Persian Gulf …”
As if Iran had been reliant on a navy it knew full well was no match for the Epstein regime’s.
“We are the greatest … Iran’s air force destroyed …”
Ditto. Just no mention of the fact the world’s two foremost terrorist regimes – no other state comes close – appear now to be at the wrong end of a successful war of economic attrition in which the state they have bullied for half a century is reliant neither on sea or air power, nor the conventions of twentieth century warfare. Rather, on a drone and hypersonic missile superiority to which neither of the rogue states has an answer. That and her power, hitherto leashed though widely advertised in the countdown to February 28, to plunge the world into economic disarray.
From this perspective Trump’s uncharacteristically subdued recitation of America’s strengths and virtues looks less like run of the mill boasting, and more like the dissemblance of a man readying his audience for a climbdown he will of course package as mission accomplished. In this regard if no other, he is indeed the greatest. 1
Trump desperately seeks an exit.
But why would the Islamic Republic, after all she has endured at the hands of the “Great Satan”, allow its 47th POTUS an easy out? More importantly – and here’s another parallel with Ukraine – why, given an endless parade of US and Israeli bad faith, would she settle for a “ceasefire” to allow them to reassess, rearm and come back harder than ever two, five or ten years down the road? Why, having struck unaccustomed fear into both, and treated the world to a taster of the economic mayhem she can impose, would Iran accept anything less than the complete lifting of murderous sanctions, 2 together with cast iron security guarantees …
… including the right, given the nuclear status of a regional foe bent on her annihilation, to put in place the ultimate deterrence she should in my view have implemented years ago?
The Guardian this morning.
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- This morning, at almost the exact time I was posting, Naked Capitalism ran a piece with more detail but pointing the same way and featuring the same Daniel Davis podcast. This follows a Wall Street Journal piece appearing late evening yesterday and helpfully headed, Trump advisers urge him to find Iran exit ramp. Is the US ruling class leaning on the tangerine narcissist with more weight than Bibi can apply?
- Last September the highly prestigious medical journal, The Lancet, determined that US and EU imposed sanctions have killed 38 million since 1970.
And here are some examples of why Donny is looking for a way out. But as the last entry outlines, that will be difficult. (All quotes from Sputnik, today (10th).
Majid Mousavi announc[ed] that, “after neutralizing US air defense layers in the region, Iran is transitioning to a new missile doctrine. From now on, no missiles carrying warheads lighter than 1 ton will be used. Waves of missile attacks will be more frequent and more widespread.”
TEHRAN:
“Any Arab or European country that expels Israeli and American ambassadors from its territory will gain complete freedom and the right to pass through the Strait of Hormuz starting tomorrow,” the IRGC’s statement said, as quoted by Iran’s state broadcaster.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf: “We are absolutely NOT seeking a ceasefire. We believe the aggressor must be struck in the mouth so that it learns a lesson and never again even thinks of attacking dear Iran.”