here we go again

We knew Trump’s monumental humiliation on No Kings Day and his barely attended pathetic excuse for a military parade that was supposed to inspire fear and envy in the rest of the world coupled with the obvious lack of respect he received at the G7 summit in Canada would have repercussions because Trump never lets the least slight slide. His obsession with winning a Nobel Peace Prize and his bottomless need for respect and adulation apparently culminated in the conviction that if he bombed Iran into oblivion thereby saving the world from possible annihilation if Iran ever actually produced a nuclear weapon it would result in both. Either that or, and more likely, bombing Iran was a big fuck you, I’ll show you who’s powerful. Trump bombs Iran and then declares now is the time for peace, in all caps, or else. He thinks he’s shown them who’s boss, that he’s won. Iran’s nuclear ambitions destroyed by me! Praise me, I saved everyone, now give me my peace prize! Iran’s all, not even Bozo. This is not over. Wars are easy to start, hard to stop. Just ask George Bush the younger. 

In an interview Secretary of State Marco Rubio, when asked why would Iran agree to a peace deal when the US already pulled out of the treaty Iran had been abiding by that limited their nuclear ambitions and then launched surprise attacks against Iran, responded “The ones that shouldn’t be trusted are the Iranians.” Same interview or maybe a different one he said they weren’t looking for a war with Iran but if they retaliated it would be the worst mistake they ever made. Apparently to this administration bombing a sovereign nation to stop them from developing a nuclear bomb after withdrawing from a treaty that was preventing them from doing so isn’t a declaration of war, but that country retaliating is. Trump will claim that Iran started this particular conflict when it was Israel who started the escalation when they started bombing Iran directly. 

Iran supports militant groups in other countries fighting what they consider oppression and we call them terrorists but so do we, so do other nations. The only difference is we don't call the ones we support terrorists. Whatever the nomenclature the goal is the same, to support those who are likely to get us what we want through the use of violence. Israel calls Iran a terrorist nation, Iran calls Israel a terrorist nation. Israel bombs hospitals, schools, residential areas, and aid distribution sites in Gaza and nobody blinks an eye. Iran bombed one hospital in Israel and is accused of war crimes. Netanyahu ignored the intel that an attack by Hamas was imminent in response to the apartheid conditions and terrorist tactics used by the IDF in Gaza and the West Bank and is using it as an excuse to wipe Gaza off the map. Less than 2,000 Israelis have been killed in the current conflict compared to almost 60,000 Palestinians. Israel restricts how much aid is allowed into Gaza if any at all and the people are starving. The US is apparently fine with that because Trump wants to develop the Gaza coast. The line between defense and terrorism is very fuzzy and depends on which side of the line you're standing on. 

So now, here we are, embroiled in another possible war started by the ‘no new wars’ president, unless of course he feels humiliated and needs to whip someone’s ass to make himself feel better, a draft dodging man who calls those killed in action or held prisoner losers. We shouldn’t be surprised, you know, war is what we do. This country has been at war for almost every year of its existence and usually more than one military action at a time. In fact I don’t think there has been a single year during my lifetime, and I’m 75 years old, that the US has not been involved in some kind of military operation all over the world including four major wars…Korean War, VietNam War, war in Afghanistan, and war in Iraq…and we are the biggest exporter of military weaponry. 

What happens in Iran remains to be seen, just how long and deep this military action will go or if it sparks a wider conflict. It puts Trump at odds with his handler Putin since Iran and Russia are aligned and Putin is not about to abandon his stronghold in the Middle East considering he already lost Syria any more than he is going to give up Ukraine and his ambitions towards all of Eastern Europe. Destroying Iran’s ability to build nuclear weapons doesn’t necessarily mean they will never have any if Russia wants them to.

So, yeah, war is what we do. War is what humans do. The entirety of human history is war and conflict and conquest creating one great empire after another. My theory is that being the apex predator we have nothing to keep us in check but ourselves, that we are our own predator. It doesn't seem to be working though. The planet is groaning with unrestrained population growth and competition for resources.

crazy people

The other day the son of the crazy woman who owns the lot next to us came over to mow and cut up the catalpa tree on the corner of the open shed that fell over several months ago. Then he was out there with a metal detector trying to find the metal stake at the front of the property that marks the property line and he was looking in the wrong spot, figuring it would be across from the fence line of the shop property across the street. Originally, the lot next to us belonged to the people who owned my house but for reasons unknown to me, they sold it to Frank of the Bountiful Garden whose property was on the other side of the lot. Frank didn't want to buy the tallow trees on the property line so the original owner retained 5', meaning we own the 5' adjacent to our property. This was news to her son and he finally conceded he would have to get someone out there to find the actual property line in preparation of putting up the fence. I'm pretty sure this is news to the crazy one as well and all this time she's been thinking we have not been respecting the property line, hence the fence between us, I guess. Or who knows what motivates her as far as we're concerned. I have to admit that I wish I could have been a bug on the wall to see her reaction when he told her. Don't you know she went nuts learning we owned 5' of property that she thinks should be hers.

And speaking of crazy people, the madman in the White House has kicked the hornets nest by assassinating the second most powerful man in Iran. For reasons. Trump is a proven liar and governments lie when they want to go to war (Iraq being our most recent example) and so I do not believe a word Trump or anyone in his administration or any of his Republican supporters says about Soleimani and his plans to attack US embassies and bases especially since defense officials dispute Trump's claim. So Soleimani was evil. So is Putin, so is Erdogan, so is Kim Jong Un, so is the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Netanyahu and all the other dictators Trump so admires and in fact he alerted Putin of his intention and not Congress who has the sole power to authorize an act of war.

Not satisfied with this stupid thoughtless stunt all because Trump and his minions can't tolerate the achievements of a black man, and asked if he had an exit strategy for the events that will surely follow, he replied “I don't need an exit strategy”; Trump has threatened to bomb 52 cultural and heritage sites in Iran, 52 non-military targets. This is a war crime. Not surprisingly, our allies that Trump has spent the last three years shitting on do not support the impulsive assassination of Soleimani with no thought as to the consequences that has already endangered their own service people abroad and Trump can't understand why not while Pompeo actually said he expected the Iranians to rejoice over Soleimani's death.

And who are we to claim righteousness? How many innocent lives have we ended in our quest for oil and conquest of the world? We destroyed Iraq under false pretenses, over half a million Iraqis dead, their infrastructure destroyed, the economy decimated, caused it to fall into anarchy and terrorism, not to mention the 30,000+ maimed American soldiers, all because Dick Cheney had a hard on for Iraqi oil.

Trump has fulfilled his own prediction/tweets about Obama...a failing unpopular (and in this case impeached) president would start a war with Iran to get re-elected.

Welcome to 2020. And I thought 2019 was fucked up.