The choice facing Iran, and the reality that most of us aren’t all hawk or all dove all the time

Balance scales with crude oil barrel and cash on one side, globe and missile on the other

From where the average American sits, the choice facing the leaders of Iran seems like no choice at all, but after Saturday’s peace negotiations failed to produce a deal, it clearly is to the remnants of the regime and no one really knows what they will choose, however much they may bloviate otherwise.  Throughout the… Continue reading The choice facing Iran, and the reality that most of us aren’t all hawk or all dove all the time

NATO just turned 77, but is it going down in the Strait of Hormuz?

Chessboard with France, Russia, and China flags on pieces; plaque reads FRANCE-RUSSIA-CHINA ALLIANCE.

As France joins forces with Russia and China at the United Nations, and makes a deal with Iran, supporters of the NATO alliance argue that it is a purely defensive affair. In that case, what purpose does it serve in the modern world? In one of the ironies that seem to increasingly define the modern… Continue reading NATO just turned 77, but is it going down in the Strait of Hormuz?

Iran: A crucial lesson from Lord of the Rings

Lord of the Rings

Given the choice between pursuing wholesale regime change or making a deal that can be improved in the future, I’d take my chances with the deal and hope that like Sauron in Lord of the Rings, Iran’s evil can be diminished such that it will never rise again even if it can’t be destroyed. “For… Continue reading Iran: A crucial lesson from Lord of the Rings

Iran: As Trump switches into deal making mode, did everyone forget that we’ve been at war for more than three weeks?

Iran Peace Talks

Last week, they claimed killing any enemy’s leadership only prolongs a war. On Monday, they claimed the President lied about engaging in talks with Iran. On Tuesday, they insisted we should not have talks at all, pretending Iran is the same now as it was before the war. On Monday, President Donald Trump announced that… Continue reading Iran: As Trump switches into deal making mode, did everyone forget that we’ve been at war for more than three weeks?

No, killing your enemy’s leadership isn’t a sure fire way to lose a war whatever the experts claim

General George S. Patton

The legendary General George S. Patton once quipped, “No dumb bastard ever won a war by going out and dying for his country. He won it by making some other dumb bastard die for his country,” but the experts have suddenly decided otherwise based on at least two false assumptions. On Tuesday, Israel reported that… Continue reading No, killing your enemy’s leadership isn’t a sure fire way to lose a war whatever the experts claim

Iran: Call it regime change, unconditional surrender, or whatever you like so long as whoever’s in charge at the end agrees to a few key things

While we do not yet know what sort of government will emerge in Iran, the President is adopting a policy much closer to the success of World War II’s unconditional surrender than the failure of the Iraq War’s regime change.  Last week, President Donald Trump demanded nothing less than unconditional surrender from Iran to end… Continue reading Iran: Call it regime change, unconditional surrender, or whatever you like so long as whoever’s in charge at the end agrees to a few key things

When, exactly, was politics normal like the Democrats claim?

Normal

Democrats plan to counter Trump’s State of the Union by claiming these aren’t normal times. Me? I’ve got a few questions about the past three decades the American people have been forced to suffer through and I would like their opinion on whether any of it was normal.  Tomorrow evening, some leading Democrats are planning… Continue reading When, exactly, was politics normal like the Democrats claim?

Hegseth’s big gathering of top military brass and my experience in the car business

Most of us who have either deadlines or quotas to meet, have been summoned by our bosses and upbraided for failing to meet them.  If I could deal with it as an 18 year old in the car business in a much more vulgar fashion, military leaders should certainly be able to deal with it… Continue reading Hegseth’s big gathering of top military brass and my experience in the car business

Trump’s war on the cartels and a tragic lesson from Biden’s failure in Afghanistan

When a strike is successful, arguments about laws, rights, or whatever will be far from persuasive, but these same laws, rights, or whatever exist to determine when someone is guilty of a crime. Four years ago, the military botched a strike on suspected terrorists in Afghanistan and ended up killing ten innocent people. Last week,… Continue reading Trump’s war on the cartels and a tragic lesson from Biden’s failure in Afghanistan

Don’t look now, but the year is ending with the biggest political scandal in the history and no one seems to care

Lying about the mental state of the President and failing to discharge duties related to that mental state are both conspiracies against the United States, punishable by law, but accountability beyond jettisoning the perpetrators into political oblivion will be hard to come by.   Conservatives have long been convinced that President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline… Continue reading Don’t look now, but the year is ending with the biggest political scandal in the history and no one seems to care