|
 |
A drawing of mine for The New Yorker during the Iraq war. You should throw the ball, though.
Just some disorganized thoughts, and links to good pieces about this nightmare we are going through. There is so much information coming out.
Trump says his war could last weeks. But they don’t know, and just admitted it. The Iranian leaders whom they thought might “take over” Iran after the initial strikes were killed in the initial strikes. Iran’s proxies are lobbing cheap drones all around the Middle East. Three US planes were shot down by Kuwait in “friendly fire.” People are rushing to leave their homes in Lebanon as Israel strikes back against Hezbolah. Israel is launching attacks into the heart of Tehran.
The US embassy in Beirut has shared the following on social media:
We urge US citizens not to travel to Lebanon. If you are in the country, depart Lebanon NOW while commercial flight options remain available. The security situation in Lebanon is volatile and unpredictable. Airstrikes have occurred throughout the country, especially in the south, the Beqaa, and parts of Beirut.
Oil prices are jumping up.
Four US service members have died.
“We expect casualties with something like this. We have three, but we expect casualties, but in the end it’s going to be a great deal for the world.”
A “great deal?” This is not a reality game show. They think it is, they called this reckless attack “Operation Epic Fury.”
Only one in four Americans support this, a new poll reports.
This war is a joint effort started by two felons, Trump and Bibi Netanyahu, hoping to stay in power and stay our of prison. And let’s not forget the strong ties between Israel and Epstein’s web, I’m still not clear the extent of that. It’s about money, too. Real estate, Trump wants to own everything.
In today’s NY Times, Thomas Friedman writes: “If the war in Iran enables Netanyahu to win the Israeli elections planned for this year, it will be a major propellant to his efforts to annex the West Bank, cripple the Israeli Supreme Court and make Israel an apartheid state, which would be a major blow to American interests in the region beyond Iran.”
He ends his column with this:
“I expect by Wednesday there will be at least three more points competing in my head to make sense of it all, because this is the most plastic, unpredictable moment in the Middle East since the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Everything — and its opposite — is possible.”
 |
The Times shares another good analysis by Ben Rhodes: “This was a decision made by one man with no legal basis, little public support and no coherent explanation of an endgame. Trump likely would not have become president without his stated opposition to forever wars — it is a feature, not a bug, of MAGA. Yet in his return to the presidency, he has proved to be far more interested in power itself. Setting aside the risks outlined above, this dynamic alone should compel stronger and sustained Democratic opposition to this war.”
“Trump’s authoritarianism is not abstract. There is nothing stopping him from wielding the awesome power of the United States to serve his own interests, not the public’s. War should never be normal. The desensitization of Americans to this kind of violence is part of what is broken in our society.”
The New York Times reports, as does The Guardian, that some Democratic lawmakers are subtly backing the attack on Iran, saying that Iran has been a threat to national security and should not have nuclear weapons. Most would agree. These centrist Democrats will make it less likely a vote for the war powers act will make it to the floor. Trump attacked Iran illegally, without consulting Congress and his reasons are opaque and keep shifting. And I believe he did this attack for unethical immoral reasons. Democrats who are not loudly denouncing this are on the wrong side of history.
Pete Hegseth said this lie morning in a press conference (I could not stand to watch; at times he makes me angrier than his boss):
“We didn’t start this war, but Trump is finishing it.”
 |
I woke a few times in the night last night and I thought about this war. Trump wants a new world order, one based on greed and power. I won’t accept that. The world order should be based on compassion and negotiation. Humanity.
Thanks for being here, let’s keep each other sane if we can.