US Attacks Iran 2026

[JohnH]

Because when you help create a power vacuum through force, you bear some responsibility for what follows.

No, you don't.

Let's say a town's government finally gets fed up with a criminal boss and they arrest the criminal boss and prosecute him. Now there is a "power vacuum".

The people of that town are not "responsible" for that. The criminals are.

Let's use another analogy.

Some Anabaptist church has a wicked and cruel leader, who has several minions and underlings. A few members finally get fed up and report his crimes to the authorities, who do go ahead and arrest him. The government and those members have ZERO RESPONSIBILITY for the "power vacuum" created.

The US had a power vacuum during the early depression years. The result was FDR

Didn’t the UK end up with Dyson?

[temporal1]

Colin Powell’s pottery barn analogy:
If you break it, you own it.
Remember Iraq.

I have zero interest in the aphorisms of some guy who presided over a failed invasion and a failed war.

There is no rule that if you take out a wicked, corrupt dictator you somehow are responsible for every thing that happens in a country.

i believe and hope, this will be found to be one of the failings of social media.
Taking pithy little quotes, stretching them too far, attempting to use them as the end-all-be-all “gotchas” to claim victory in a literal virtual moment. It’s not enough.

Politicians love it. gotcha gotcha gotcha
Thomas Sowell might say, “It’s just not true.” So facts-oriented.

Thankfully, the world still has Thomas Sowell, at 96, still thinking. And even writing books.

i appreciated Colin Powell until i didn’t, he might easily have been the first U.S. black president, he firmly declined to run, as had others, AND his wife was not well for years. Total empathy for that. i respect his decision to prioritize his family.

The saying predates P Barn:

History "you break it you bought it"
The phrase "you break it, you bought it" has a rich history, with its origins tracing back to a Miami Beach gift shop that posted the message over its fragile merchandise in 1952. This policy has been used in various contexts, including retail stores and political discussions.

It has also been referenced in the Iraq War, where it was known as the Pottery Barn rule, although Pottery Barn itself does not have such a policy. The phrase has been used metaphorically in politics to suggest that if an actor inadvertently creates a problem, they are obliged to provide the resources necessary to correct it.
Wikipedia

[ohio jones]

No, you don't.

Let's say a town's government finally gets fed up with a criminal boss and they arrest the criminal boss and prosecute him. Now there is a "power vacuum".

The people of that town are not "responsible" for that. The criminals are.

Let's use another analogy.

Some Anabaptist church has a wicked and cruel leader, who has several minions and underlings. A few members finally get fed up and report his crimes to the authorities, who do go ahead and arrest him. The government and those members have ZERO RESPONSIBILITY for the "power vacuum" created.

The US had a power vacuum during the early depression years. The result was FDR

Didn’t the UK end up with Dyson?

No, Mike is a Brooklyn native.

[Valerie]

"Older men declare war. But it is youth that must fight and die." U.S. President Herbert Hoover

In the past there have been leaders who led their armies from the front. Alexander the Great, Julius Ceasar, Genghis Kahn, George Washington, George Patton. I hate war and I don't see any point in it. But I admire men who don't hide and put others at risk.

It is wrong for Hamas military people to hide in civilian areas. But somehow it is ok for leaders of modern countries to sit in comfortable rooms "watching a TV show" while innocents around the world get killed in collateral damage, as a result of these leader's choices. I guess they figure it is survival of the fittest?

We obviously understand the big picture.
For the record our military is volunteers who see their part as “servants” for others benefit, willing to lay down their own lives. Sound familiar?

Not really, other than having heard it from people not directly involved in war. For some reason I thought the goal in war was to make the enemy soldiers die for their country rather than laying down one's own life. Isn't that the whole purpose of using drones and missiles to do the killing from as far away as possible?

Every one who volunteers to serve their country doesn’t “hope” to die but the reality is very real that they could which is why I said they are “willing” to lay down their lives. We haven’t had the draft in more than 50 years so these are all volunteers, my father was, my brother was, and although I wasn’t for it, my son was.

[Soloist]

Every one who volunteers to serve their country doesn’t “hope” to die but the reality is very real that they could which is why I said they are “willing” to lay down their lives. We haven’t had the draft in more than 50 years so these are all volunteers, my father was, my brother was, and although I wasn’t for it, my son was.

The whole point of war is to get the other guy to lay down his life not you.
That’s ironically, a very common statement.
Morality is not indicated by willingness to die for your country. Otherwise there wouldn’t be so much hate against those who do so in service of Islam.

[JimFoxvog]

[Ernie]

I wonder if the secretary of defense thought about how many air defenses it might take to down all the drones sent by Iran, and whether they thought about what will happen when there are no more air defenses and the drones keep coming?

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/iran ... -gulf-last

Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.

It could make for quite unusual turn of events if America and allies at some point needed to send a delegation asking for conditions of peace. I don't expect that at all, but such turn of events have happened in human history.

[JimFoxvog]

I found this interesting:

How is this legal?? Someone just made a fortune betting on the exact date the U.S. would bomb Iran, placing their wagers hours before the first missiles hit Tehran, on a platform where Donald Trump Jr. sits on the advisory board.

Six freshly created Polymarket accounts raked in roughly $1 million in profit by betting the U.S. would strike Iran by February 28, the precise day Trump launched his bombing campaign. Most of these wallets were funded within 24 hours of the attack and purchased shares for about a dime apiece just hours before explosions lit up Tehran.

One account called “Magamyman” turned an $87,000 wager into over half a million dollars.

Now here’s where it gets filthy. Donald Trump Jr. sits on Polymarket’s advisory board, and his firm 1789 Capital poured a major investment into the platform last year. That investment was valued in the double-digit millions. Meanwhile, the Trump administration shut down both the DOJ and CFTC investigations into Polymarket that had been opened under Biden.

So to recap: The president’s son advises and profits from a betting platform where anonymous users with apparent insider knowledge of military operations are cashing in on war. And the cops assigned to watch that platform? Sent home.

Senator Chris Murphy called it out plainly and is pushing legislation to ban this. Rep. Ritchie Torres has already introduced a bill that would bar federal officials from trading on prediction markets tied to government policy . Even TMZ reported that people at a DC restaurant were openly discussing the Iran bombing hours before it happened.

This isn’t a prediction market. It’s a war profiteering machine with a crypto veneer, and the Trump orbit built themselves a front-row seat.

[JohnH]

I wonder if the secretary of defense thought about how many air defenses it might take to down all the drones sent by Iran, and whether they thought about what will happen when there are no more air defenses and the drones keep coming?

It is very likely they planned for this, as Iran's drone "capabilities" have been well known.

It could make for quite unusual turn of events if America and allies at some point needed to send a delegation asking for conditions of peace. I don't expect that at all, but such turn of events have happened in human history.

The likelihood of such a thing happening is about zero. However, the countries that have been getting hit by Iranian drones are not America or its closest allies. The countries that are getting hit are Iran's neighbours such as Oman, Qatar, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and so forth. Relations between these countries and Iran have been very poor for a long time, mostly due to Iran's belligerence. It is far more likely that these countries would unite and conduct an invasion of Iran to permanently disable their ability to harass them with drones and missiles carrying bombs than it would be that would capitulate and "send a delegation asking for conditions of peace".

At this point, the Iranian regime is a global pariah that has no allies willing to defend them. Iran's naval fleet was just sunk. They have no functional air force at all. They are unable to do much with their missiles; they have inflicted very few casualties. I suppose what's left of the regime could decide to just engage in nonstop terrorism with drones and bombs, but that will simply make their enemies feel far more justified in a harsh response.

[temporal1]

Some very grateful responses to the ISRAEL-U.S. attacks are appearing.

Strangely, Candice’s parents were/are in Mexico during the cartel violence last week, i believe she was shaken;
in this linked report below, she describes her husband as from Iran! International news is personal for her in Canada.

She is remaining composed.

Canada / JUNO NEWS / Candice Malcom
“CBC pushes unbelievable propaganda + THIS is what happens when you don’t vet immigrants” / 21min

“On today’s episode of the Candice Malcolm Show News Update, Candice brings us the latest from Operation Epic Fury – a joint US-Israeli bombing campaign to take out the Iranian dictatorship. Candice discusses the immediate reaction and celebration from Persians and pro-freedom activists in Canada and across the Western world. Even inside Iran, people took to the streets to dance and celebrate the end of this tyrannical government.

Candice discusses the reaction from political leaders across the spectrum and the shocking coverage of some legacy media outlets, including the New York Times and CBC. Believe it or not, rather than showcase the triumphant celebrations and optimism from the Iranian dissidents and the large Persian community in Canada, the CBC covered the news through the lens of Iranian regime propaganda and pretended the country was in mourning.

This may be an all-time low for Canada’s state broadcaster.

Next, Candice covers the pro-freedom activists in Canada who are now receiving death threats and a burrage of bullets from pro-regime thugs who are now active in Canada. This is what happens when you allow unvetted immigration, as was the case under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who admitted regime-loyalists and insiders over the past decade.

Finally, in a quiet deal not covered by the legacy media, the Carney Government signed a new agreement with the Musquem Indian Band that recognizes Aboriginal title over all of Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, North Vancouver and West Vancouver.”

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i’ll add this compilation from Anthony Brian Logan / ABL:

24 Minutes Of Iranians CELEBRATING US & Israel Attack On The Regime! / 24min

The recent joint USA - Israeli strikes on Iran targeted regime military sites, nuclear-related facilities, and key figures, including the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This sparked notable positive reactions from segments of the Iranian population and diaspora, particularly among regime opponents who view the attacks as weakening the Islamic Republic and opening a path to freedom.

Prayers for resolution and the best outcomes possible for all.