Friends, the current U.S.-Iranian standoff in and around the Strait of Hormuz is a very interesting strategic challenge, and it could lead to a wide variety of side effects and could resolve itself in a wide variety of ways. This article examines numerous scenarios as well as potential ramifications of the Strait's closure. What I find odd is that in none of these scenarios does the United States Navy seize control of the Strait and reopen it to international maritime traffic. Now, is that possibility so hard to imagine? Not for me!!! I think it's well within our capabilities, and if the global oil crisis goes on much longer our allies will be begging us to do something along these lines. Well, either that, or they'll be begging us to surrender to the mullahs, which undoubtedly is their preference at this point, since they so despise us.
Here is some speculation that the U.S. economy could be primed for a rip-roaring recovery, if and when the conflict with Iran ends. That makes quite a bit of sense. I mean, consumer demand and stock market valuations remain robust despite the current "war". Just imagine if all those uncertainties were to lift! I continue to believe it's very likely that they will long before the midterms in November.
RAY TO DR. WADDY AND JACK
ReplyDeletePraying and hoping for the very best for our country in this Iran ordeal.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: President Trump is now engrossed in close examination and consideration of the present state of our demands, "Iran's " offer and its apparently grudging growing acceptance of Israeli and American intransigence. That is as it should be; our President is a proven canny negotiator and keeping the Iranian regime on tenterhooks, especially when it is close to economic collapse ,is also a gutsy tactic by our hombre President . I'd refrain from playing poker with him!
ReplyDeleteMy understanding is that he will not accept anything less than: Iran';s surrender and fully confirmable physical destruction of their store of partially enriched uranium ,and untolled and otherwise unlimited access for all nations to the open and free high sea of the Straits of Hormuz .I expect that he will couple this with a frank promise of unrelenting close surveillance of Iran in order to intercept the expected dishonesty of the present regime in regaining its nuclear capabilities.
Of course we cannot be confident that an apologetic and frantically Trump legacy rejecting future DSA/Dem President might shrink from enforcing such "icky" resolve. Our country's enemies know from experience that the 'American" far left will reflexively support ANY enemy of a condemned politically incorrect America, no matter what the evil and depravity of the enemy. The solution? Keep the buggers out of office!
RAY TO JACK
DeleteSince the Straits of Hormuz is primarily a naval operation, I think you need to be recalled to active duty in The Navy, regardless of your age, and with a promotion to officer rank. How about it Jack? Are you ready to serve your country again on the high seas!
Dr. Waddy from Jack: I agree, our economy is very likely to bounce back in a big way after Iran is dealt its due. The stock markets are doing very well. The approximate something over 1$ rise in gas ;prices after this necessary war commenced ; is that really enough to justify a national revolt against our war effort? I know some Americans are experiencing great difficulty paying for the gas needed to get them to work. I think they should be helped with this. The America haters may strive for a Vietnam style betrayal but, I think , in vain. After all, they can't count on the doddering 60s radical boomer faction, now disabled by age rather than by smoke.
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ReplyDeleteAll joking aside, I might be "called up" as an Airman Basic in the Air Force.
Frankly, I don't know what to make of the Iran situation. Certainly looks like same government is still intact there, of the same type that makes women wear chadors, lest they be executed for failure to do so.
Ray from Jack: Well, we did our duty , plain and simple,in a just cause. And I don't think our efforts were futile , though they were badly misused by meddling know it alls and by traitors. Vietnam was a battle in which we were betrayed at home but it was part of a Cold War we won . The commies never did get to the Straits of Malacca or the Atlantic coast.
ReplyDeleteRAY TO JACK
ReplyDeleteThat's right Jack, "the (military) commies never did get to the Straits of Malacca or the Atlantic coast" BECAUSE, they were already in The United States, both foreign and domestic, as the ideological commies. As you say, we were "betrayed at home". Been going on here at home for a very long time, certainly way before Vietnam.
RAY TO JACK
ReplyDeleteTake another look at all of the places the U.S. has been involved in since 1945. Take a real hard look at Afghanistan, for example. We were there for 20 years. What did we accomplish? Russia (then the Soviet Union) was there for eight years supporting the Afghan Communists against the Muslim fanatics. Now they (Russia) is supporting the Muslim fanatics.
Of course, the focus has been on
how our withdrawal was messed up. Okay, so it was messed up, and Biden is blamed, but Trump wants to get out too. My point, is that no matter who the president was, why did we want to leave after 20 years? Was is because we won?
RAY TO JACK
ReplyDeleteI think Trump realized how futile being in Afghanistan was. Apparently Biden did too, to be fair. The withdrawal disaster is on the shoulder of some of Biden's not very bright military commanders.
Ray from Jack: Agreed but as I remember , those Stalinist moles were until about say '67, a secluded cabal much wounded by their deserved ordeal in the "50s and just gathering the nerve to come out of their hidey holes. I was at a small , traditional state college then (semi formal dances, frats etc) and I saw this astounding change commence even there from '65 to '67. At first the college administration sent a couple of the more precocious ones packing but soon enough the rot set in, even there. I'm glad I was in the Navy by then. The really smart revolutionaries knew they could never physically conquer the U.S. , so like the quasi criminals they are , they probed for another way. By then they could see that fortune had given them an enormous windfall in the terribly naive boomer generation. Among those who flocked to the campuses they found myriad disciples( though so many of the boomers did do their mature and patriotic duties ). By Nov. '72 's electoral humbling by despised President Nixon they could see it was going to be long haul so they resolved to to disingenuously invade the "establishment" and subvert from within. So it went up to the present day and they've had their ups and downs as they waited for "the main chance". They thought Hillary would open the door for them but along came an astonishing political figure who turned out to manifest their worst nightmares.
ReplyDeleteJust now they are feeling their "Os" again and have emerged from their 2024 funk with a newly manifested frankness and assertiveness about their Marxist intentions and once again Civil War II is reengaged with possibly everything on the line.
Our object in Afghanistan, as I understand it, was to eliminate that primitive land as a haven for the monsters who did Sept. 11. We kept their heads down but in the meantime Iran spread its malign influence. We would have had to maintain a permanent presence to have kept the Taliban from coming down from the mountains and the U.S. national will to do that was lacking. Of course hapless Biden bungled our departure.Meanwhile Iran became the nexus of Islamist hatred and murderousness .
Marxism is a virulent and murderously aggressive doctrine. Its seduction of wounded populations like those of Russia and China may be explainable by their desperate circumstances. How though, has it gained the once again accelerating support it has in the most prosperous country of all? My guess: our freedom from want and subsequent leisure time has given so many of us leave to recklessly consider ideas which defy common sense .
RAY TO JACK
ReplyDeleteWhen you have time, check out John Reed, who wrote "Ten Days That Shook The World", and you already have an American who is one of the originators of the far left we have today, and one of the few, if not the only American, buried in the Kremlin, of all places. All the s-t we are going through today started well over 100 years ago, and has taken on different forms at different times.
Personally, I readily acknowledge that there are arguments for and against the present conflict with Iran, just as there were back in the Vietnam War days, but most people began in the early, mid, and even late 60s supporting our efforts in Vietnam, because they assumed that our leaders were doing their best to protect us from the genuine evils of communism. The present conflict, however, has never had majority support, because we are a MUCH more cynical people than we were back in, oh, 1964. Our tolerance for risk and adversity is also way lower. I mean, 3% inflation isn't a very good reason to root for a bunch of medieval tyrants against the President of the United States. Just sayin'.
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