This Carbon Based Life

By David Glenn Cox

Trump and Israel assassinated a head of state, killing four dozen political and military heads in a Pearl Harbor-style attack. Sunk their navy, bombed over one thousand targets in their country, and then, Donald Trump says, he’s ready to negotiate. They were negotiating on Friday, before Trump and Israel attacked.

The Iranian president says they’ve learned the lessons of the Iraq war. Time as a weapon. Iran doesn’t have to win. They only need to not lose. They only need to shut down the straits of Hormuz and strangle world oil markets. They only needed to destabilize world economies. What did Trump gain from his unprovoked attack? Bargaining position? Rather than weakening the Iranian government Trump’s unprovoked attack, has strengthened it.

It’s regime change on the cheap! Bombing only, with no boots on the ground. So Iran knows that no invasion is coming. Joint Chiefs head lackey Dan Cain had warned, Bombing Iran could have unintended consequences. What does he know? Israel hints maybe boots on the ground might be necessary, but the American trained seal media does not hear them. Whose boots do you suppose were they implicating?

Iran says it fired four ballistic missiles at the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln. The US Navy says, “Not even close.” But no new pictures or videos of the Abe Lincoln are available. The Trump Administration can be trusted, right? Would they ever lie to us? After the Battle of Midway, the Japanese covered up the loss of four aircraft carriers. What would Trump’s numbers look like with a damaged aircraft carrier?

Over five hundred dead Iranians. Dead civilians in Israel, Kuwait, and the UAE. Oil refineries in flames in Saudi Arabia. Hotels destroyed in Doha and Dubai. Oil tankers in flames, and Donald Trump says he’s ready to negotiate. Iran has no reason to negotiate…Now! Has Donald Trump has strengthened his hand? Only 27% of Americans approve of his attacks, and only one half of Republicans approve on the first weekend. Give it ten days, or a month, or a year. Trump’s numbers are bad now and will only get worse.

Who or what is in control here? Trump pleads for negotiations while unnamed sources inside the White House say “No, negotiations.” Invisible media stories about killings outside of US embassies. Invisible media stories of 165 dead Iranian school children. What if Trump wagged the dog and only got fleas? Trump has painted himself into a corner. He has no path forward and no way out. Was it all a plan to deflect from Jeffrey Epstein? If so, it’s not working. It’s like burning down the house to avoid having to vacuum.

Outside of the North Korean states of America, world responses are muted and banal. Japan says, We didn’t like Iran, either. The UK says Iran was a terrorist state, how can we get our people home? This is the President who once said, Kamala Harris would get us into a war with Iran and he wouldn’t. Republican Congress critters run for cover as Democrats attack. Trump didn’t just strengthen the Iranian regime; he also strengthened the Democrats’ chances in the midterm elections in November. As if they really needed any help!

It is the reality of the non-reality. The economy is hemorrhaging jobs, while the economy is touted as doing great. Trump claims he’s defeated inflation but burning tankers and oil refineries and shutting off 20% of the world’s oil supply says, not  for long. Trump says Iran was a terrorist state as he bombs a sovereign nation in an unprovoked attack because they weren’t negotiating fast enough. The pot calling the kettle black. You know, negotiate, fast enough. But he’s ready to negotiate now! Had enough? Have we killed enough of your people to teach a terrorist nation how to behave? Can we reach a fair settlement now? Iran answers, Fuck off! Pam Bondi says the Dow is at 50,000! Correction, the Dow was at 50,000! Try 48,500 now and dropping.

To my knowledge, I can’t think of a single administration which has lost so much support from so many corners, all at once. At home, from his own Republican Party. Abroad, from allies and former allies. From Wall Street and the billionaire investment class and gained absolutely nothing in the process. Act in haste and repent in stupidity, I guess. The Trump regime has stubbed its big toe and hastened its own demise. They’ve made themselves radioactive. Only the brave and the dumb will support them now!

The Albuquerque Journal reports,  New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez is reopening its investigation into Epstein’s Zorro Ranch. The state had reached an agreement with the Feds in 2019 to halt its state investigation. The Trump Justice Department claimed they already had a multi-state investigation of Epstein and that the state investigation would be redundant. What the Trump Justice Department did then was to suffocate the investigation. No search warrants, no subpoenas, no interviews, and no seizure of the Zorro Ranch looking for evidence. No investigation, period! Case closed! That’s some real fine police work there. boys!

As obviously crooked as a dog’s hind leg and now the zombies are reawakened. That noise you hear are the chickens coming home to roost.

No one can tell you what will happen today on Wall Street, but futures prices have been falling all night. Bitcoin was initially up and then down, and then up again and then down. Diagnosis. The investors don’t know what will happen either. But Donald Trump once bankrupted a casino where the house always wins. Fear the worst and hope for the best. Rising oil prices are inflationary. The dollar rising is also inflationary. Just what this glorious economy needs. More turmoil and uncertainty. Donald Trump has opened Pandora’s box and let loose a plague upon the world economy. All to gain…nothing. Round and round she goes; where she stops, nobody knows! The greatest evil event to serve no purpose in recent memory.

But it so often happens in dictatorships, where agreeing with the boss is highly encouraged and disagreeing isn’t tolerated. A groupthink develops. The Japanese were going to ambush the US Navy at Midway. The Germans were going to polish off Russia in two months. And then, all would be sunshine and roses. Nothing could go wrong. We have it all planned out!  We will bomb Pearl Harbor and the United States will quickly sue for peace.

“One may know how to conquer without being able to do it. ”
― Sun Tzu