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The business model of saber rattling

A couple days ago, Trump promised a devastating escalation of his war of choice in Iran. He threatened to blow up a bridge or power plant for every ship attacked by Iran or their Houthi clients. Hasn’t happened. In fact, Trump has paused attacks on Iran for the past couple of days. “ President Trump has set aside, at least for now, plans to sharply escalate the American military assault against Iran, with particular concern that intensifying the war could dangerously drain the Pentagon’s already diminished stockpile of Patriot antimissile interceptors and other air defense munitions in the Middle East.   “The threat to interceptor stockpiles is one of many considerations that have made a return to major combat operations a hugely risky endeavor, administration officials say. Mr. Trump and his top aides are also uneasy about the prospect of a widening war in the Middle East, the alienation of key Gulf allies who are vulnerable to Iranian attack, a global economic crunch, and growing...
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Tucker Carlson’s versatility of conviction

Carlson was pro-Trump before his current pivot to anti-Trump. But he was anti-Trump before he was pro-Trump: “During Wednesday’s episode of the  “Straight Shooter”  show, Smith questioned why people should believe that Carlson, a once staunch Trump supporter, is actually serious about the breakup. Smith noted some people could just view it as “another pivot” politically for Carlson. “Smith asked the question after bringing up that Carlson used to hate Trump “passionately” in 2021, referring to a series of  private text messages  Carlson sent to a Fox News producer expressing contempt for Trump that were publicly exposed — only later to become a loyalist to Trump.   “How do you answer that?” Smith pressed.   “Noting he’s been “wrong a lot” about “big things,” Carlson specifically admitted to being wrong about Trump.   “I was wrong on the Iraq war and I’m sure a million other things,” he continued. “But anyway, I don’t know what to say. People can judge ...
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Quote of the day

But rather than taking advantage of this opportunity to craft an economic alliance that would maximize leverage over China, the Trump administration has gone in the opposite direction. It has levied high tariffs on its own allies, many of which were also pressured into committing to huge investments in the United States. Washington tightened the screws on its allies rather than on Beijing, sapping the United States of economic leverage and forcing it to confront China alone. ~Ben Vagle and Stephen Brooks  
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Cybertruck is the new Edsel

I’ve never paid much attention to cars, but the Ford Edsel was already a punchline when I was a kid. I don’t know if I ever saw one, but any reference to it seemed to be accompanied by a smirk. “The Edsel is one of the greatest and most infamous flops in automotive history, but it's in trouble. It's perilously close to being dethroned by a newcomer: the Tesla Cybertruck. Despite the fact that their debuts are separated by over 65 years, they bear some striking similarities. Both were predicted to sell over 200,000 units in their first year on the market, both have — uh — unusual design languages, both have suffered sales drops every year they've been on sale and both have become the punchlines of their respective eras.” The first time I saw a cybertruck was when we were on vacation in Yellowstone. Someone had parked it outside the restaurant we were dining in. The kitchen and waitstaff were gawking from the window at the front of the restaurant. I’ve always thought the cybe...
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The mile and me

When I ran track for Oak Ridge High School in the spring of 1973., my best mile time was 4:54. The following summer, I was living on frat row and taking summer classes at UT-Knoxpatch. By the end of that summer, I got my time down to 4:28. My daughter can testify that when she was in high school, I beat her in a mile run. Soon after, I abandoned running for biking. I’m certain I couldn’t run a mile at any speed now. The record time for the mile was broken last weekend: “ If you represent your school, or your club in athletics, then perhaps you could be following in Josh Kerr's very speedy footsteps one day. “The Scottish athlete broke a 27-year-old world record at a Diamond League event at the London Stadium on Saturday.   “He ran one mile (1.6 kilometres) in a lightning-quick three minutes 42.66 seconds, breaking the previous record by half a second.” Ah, to be young again! https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/clyvg2q1np6o  
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Israel’s proxy war

During the Cold War, the US and Soviet Union supported proxy wars in which their client states did the dirty work. Of course, the USSR is no more, but proxy wars continue. While the current war in Iran began with joint strikes by the US and Israel, Israel now acknowledges that the US is its client. “ Israel’s   far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has described the renewed   US   war on   Iran   as the ideal outcome for Israel, provided Israelis do not have to fight it themselves.   "Israel has no interest in joining the campaign - the current situation is the best for us," Smotrich said on Tuesday in comments carried by   Kan news .” *snip* “ Israel and the US started the war with coordinated attacks on Iran on 28 February, after Israel lobbied Washington into the conflict, prompting Tehran to retaliate against US military assets across the region. “ The war was renewed earlier this month with the US striking Iranian targets and Iran hitting ...
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Trump’s silly post on Canadian wildfires

“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air, the quality of which is dangerous, and totally unacceptable!” Trump wrote on his social media platform, saying he would call Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney about the issue.” For decades, Canada was unnecessarily invaded by carbon dioxide from US cars and electric power generation, the quality of which is dangerous and totally unacceptable. That invasion is far more egregious and consequential than forest fire smoke in Canada. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/bernie-moreno-sanction-canadian-officials-wildfires-climate-change_n_6a5a7953e4b0dbc765870247?origin=home-latest-news-unit
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