surprise

Russia made around $10 billion in two weeks of Middle East war. That gives Putin more confidence to keep fighting, Zelensky said.

The Gulf Stream Is Moving North – And It Could Be An Early Warning Sign www.iflscience.com/the-gulf-str...

The is the federal government telling news stations to provide favorable coverage of the war or their licenses will be pulled. A truly extraordinary moment. We aren't on the verge of a totalitarian takeover. WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF IT. Act like it.

IRGC warns the United States to evacuate all American industrial centers across the Middle East and asks the people living near industrial factories in which Americans hold shares to evacuate those areas to avoid harm. -Fars News

Not so long ago, hugging Hitler was one of those lines you just didn’t cross. But that’s what’s been happening with increasing regularity, revealed by a recent string of unhinged text chains among young Republicans. Read @johnavlon.bsky.social commentary: www.rollingstone.com/politics/pol...

He fucked up, and he knows it.

whether building critical minerals supply chains or securing the strait of hormuz, turns out the united states still really needs friends and allies.

He Invited the Chinese into the Persian Gulf?

My critique of the Trump administration not communicating with the Navy leaving it un ready for this war is dead on. However, there’s another story here. We spend a lot of money to keep the 5th Fleet in the Persian Gulf. They appear unable to do their core mission. That needs examination.

TRUMP: “Drain the swamp!” REALITY: The Swamp has never been more full. He is the Swampiest Swamp Monster who ever did Swamp. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/13/u...

Pete Hegseth promised to make America's military more lethal, with more war crimes. This is very on-brand for Pete Hegseth.

Cross-Strait Relations: The PLA Air Force (PLAAF) has almost completely ceased activity near Taiwan since February 27, after conducting near-daily sorties into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) since 2023. 4/6

Read. Nothing that’s happening in the Persian Gulf is happening in a vacuum. It affects all other theaters.

Trump does not have the authority to start a war in Iran. And yet, he’s moving in the direction of committing ground troops. If Republicans in Congress do not want to serve their constituents or their constitutional duty, they should just resign.

Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, according to U.S. officials. IRGC forces started to use small craft to slowly lay the mines yesterday, with the plan that they can deploy them faster than the U.S. can remove them.-NYT www.nytimes.com/2026/03/12/w...

Seems we already knew this during Trump's first term.

There is a very sophisticated piece of phony video reporting to show Rachel Maddow talking about Judge Cannon‘s removal. It is not real.

SoH transits:

If anyone remembers my post about exhaustion being a potential factor with the Ford... news.usni.org/2026/03/12/c...

I really shouldn’t laugh…

Supertankers rush to Red Sea port as Iran war chokes Gulf oil exports ft.trib.al/jZEmoEH

😕💰

NEW: Iran has deployed fewer than 10 naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. (1/7) Iran Update Morning Special Report, March 11, 2026: isw.pub/IranUpdate03...

Iran attacked commercial ships on Wednesday across the Persian Gulf and targeted Dubai International Airport, escalating a campaign of squeezing the oil-rich region as global energy concerns mounted and American and Israeli airstrikes pounded the Islamic Republic.

Just like 2020 when Trump downplayed over 100 service members with traumatic brain injuries as “headaches”, and downplaying covid deaths, Trump is never honest with the American people about this if he thinks it makes him look bad. Because Trump is all about Trump. www.cbsnews.com/news/strike-...

The escalation trap.

Not great when the only people in the free world who believe and trust Vladimir Putin’s word on critical things despite all evidence to the contrary are currently running the government of the United States.

The escalation trap. Not a surprise that this is happening. But we are on this road nonetheless.

In addition to easing sanctions on Russian oil, the Administration maintains its perfect record of screwing American friends and rewarding enemies.

The Iranian drone attack in Kuwait that killed U.S. service members was more severe than previously known. Dozens were injured with brain trauma, shrapnel wounds and burns, with over 30 still hospitalized, including about 25 at Landstuhl in Germany. -CBS News

Read.

I still see no evidence of any type of augmentation to the U.S. Navy presence in or around the Persian Gulf. Also- no evidence of ships being deployed in support. It seems no effort to reopen the Straits of Hormuz is likely in the near to medium term (weeks).

The strange broadcasts began in the hours after the US and Israel attacked Iran. Strings of numbers recited in Farsi, transmitted from western Europe, at 5.30am and 9.30pm every day. What are these mysterious missives ... and who are they for? Read the story in today's #FTEdit 👉 ft.trib.al/6xBuiGA

Iran published a list of “new targets” The list, published by state-affiliated Tasnim news agency, is entitled “Iran’s new targets” and includes various regional offices, as well as cloud, data and development centers of major American tech firms with operations in the Middle East.

Since 9/11, the U.S. Navy has adopted autonomous underwater vehicles that greatly reduce the amount of time required to locate naval mines underwater. The EOD sailors at CTF56 in Bahrain are trained and ready to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if required www.nytimes.com/2026/03/10/w...

5/ And on the Strait of Hormuz, they had NO PLAN. I can't go into more detail about how Iran gums up the Strait, but suffice it say, right now, they don't know how to get it safely back open. Which is unforgiveable, because this part of the disaster was 100% foreseeable.

I get the feeling that there’s a big disconnect between the military and the White House. You can see it in how the Navy was not prepared. And I see no evidence that the Navy is gathering a force to open the straits. Perhaps it is but there’s no evidence of it.

Will the Houthis join the Iran war? www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menaso...

Assessments are that although Mojtaba Khamenei was injured during the war he remains capable of carrying out his duties and managing state affairs as Iran's new supreme leader.-JPost

Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important energy chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of all crude oil, according to two people familiar with US intelligence reporting on the issue. https://cnn.it/4ljpiay

Here we go. Interestingly, we detected the mining but appear to have taken no steps (at least that have been reported) to stop it. Not large scale mining… yet. But they’ve started.

Start to watch the story. This may be a Chinese exercise, but there are some odd elements about it. It’s probably nothing but it’s worth keeping an eye on.

This was literally my first thought as well.

Apparently, there are ground options being considered. I still think they’ll try to avoid using those because of the cost in an election year. But at the end of the day… choices are limited in what began as a war of choice.

It is always either incompetence or corruption. This could be a mix.

I suspect a lot of young Americans are aboard ships gathering around the Persian Gulf. Some may not be coming home. I hope folks remember they serve us… not the man in the Wh.