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Are you and FATE competing to be the biggest loser? Explaining how similar situations have turned out in the past is not predicting the future. It's a cautionary tale some seem destined to ignore.

Carry on......

3 American F-15 jets "mistakenly shot down" by Kuwait but all crew safe, U.S. military says

Three American F-15 fighter jets were shot down over Kuwait in a "friendly fire incident," the U.S. military said Monday, but there were no casualties.

The Air Force fighter jets were "mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses," CENTCOM said in a statement, adding that "all six aircrew ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition."

The jets were flying in support of Operation Epic Fury and crashed in Kuwait amid attacks from Iranian aircraft, ballistic missiles and drones that the U.S. and its regional allies have been racing to intercept.

CENTCOM said the Kuwaitis acknowledged this incident and that it was grateful for the efforts of the Kuwaiti defense forces and their support in the ongoing operation.

Kuwait's defense ministry said earlier on social media that several U.S. warplanes had crashed in Kuwait. A ministry spokesperson said authorities launched search and rescue operations and evacuated the crews to hospitals, adding that they were in stable condition.

The jets were downed on the third day of the Iran war — a joint U.S.-Israeli military operation that Israel has dubbed Roaring Lion and the U.S. is calling Operation Epic Fury. Iran has retaliated with missile attacks directed at Israel and Arab neighbors in response.

U.S. Central Command said Sunday that three American service members have been killed and five others were seriously wounded. CBS News learned the casualties were among American personnel based in Kuwait.

The Iranian Red Crescent says 555 people have been killed in Iran.

President Trump said Sunday the joint military operation will continue "until all of our objectives are achieved," which could be up to four weeks.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-f-15-jets-mistakenly-shot-down-kuwait-riendly-fire-crew-safe/

Hegseth leaves door open for boots on the ground in Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday left the door open for boots on the ground in Iran, but said the United States would not be pulled into an “endless” war similar to Iraq.

Hegseth was asked during a press briefing whether the U.S. currently had troops in Iran.

“No, but we’re not going to go into the exercise of what we will or will not do,” he said.

“I think it’s one of those fallacies for a long time that this department or presidents or others should tell the American enemies, by the way, here’s exactly what, here’s exactly how long we’ll go, here’s exactly how far we’ll go, here’s what we’re willing to do and not do — it’s foolishness,” he added.

Hegseth referenced his experience fighting in Iraq, saying Trump would not repeat the mistakes of the past.

“You don’t have to roll 200,000 people in there and stay for 20 years. We’ve proven that you can achieve objectives that advance American interests without being foolish. Now, will we be bold about it? Are we going to be decisive about it? Put months and months of planning into what kind of effects we want to achieve? Absolutely,” he said.

“But going forward, why in the world would we tell you, the enemy, anybody, what we will or will not do in pursuit of an objective.”

Hegseth said the objectives of the military operation were clear: “destroy Iranian offensive missiles, destroy Iranian missile production, destroy their navy and other security infrastructure, and they will never have nuclear weapons.”

However, it remains unclear whether Trump has a vision for Iran once those military objectives are completed. He has called on Iranians to stage a revolution against the Islamic regime, which has announced new leadership after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Four Americans have been killed so far in the war. Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, who also spoke to reporters Monday morning, said more Americans would likely die before it’s over.

“This is not a single overnight operation. The military objectives that Centcom and the Joint Force have been tasked with will take some time to achieve, and in some cases, will be difficult and gritty work. We expect to take additional losses, and as always, we will work to minimize U.S. losses. But as the secretary said, this is major combat operations,” Caine said, referencing U.S. Central Command (Centcom).

Trump issued a similar warning in a video posted to Truth Social on Sunday.

“We pray for the full recovery of the wounded and send our immense love and eternal gratitude to the families of the fallen,” the president said in a video on his Truth Social platform. “And sadly, there will be likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is.

“[There will] likely be more but we’ll do everything possible where that won’t be the case.”

Centcom announced Sunday that three American service members have been killed in action, while five were injured and “several” others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions during the operation that the U.S. and Israel launched against Iran on Saturday.

Early Monday, Centcom said a fourth U.S. soldier had been killed.

Vice President Vance, speaking on Thursday, before Trump launched strikes on Iran, said there was “no chance” that it would lead to a longer war in the Middle East.

“The idea that we’re going to be in a Middle Eastern war for years with no end in sight — there is no chance that will happen,” said Vance, a longtime skeptic of foreign intervention.

“I do think we have to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past,” Vance added. “I also think that we have to avoid overlearning the lessons of the past. Just because one president screwed up a military conflict doesn’t mean we can never engage in military conflict again. We’ve got to be careful about it, but I think the president is being careful.”

Trump’s war in Iran has quickly expanded, with Iran launching retaliatory attacks on Gulf states that host U.S. military bases, including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

Hezbollah, the powerful Iranian proxy militia in Lebanon, has also entered the war, launching rockets into Israel, ending a monthslong ceasefire between the countries.

https://thehill.com/policy/defense/5762676-boots-ground-iran-hegseth/

Caine says more U.S. forces being deployed, Hegseth won’t say how long war could last

The U.S. is poised to send additional forces to the Middle East today, military leaders said, while suggesting that the war could continue longer than the four- to five-week timeline that Trump floated a day earlier.

In preparation for possible armed conflict against Iran, the U.S. in recent weeks had preemptively deployed thousands of service members from all military branches, along with dozens of refueling tankers and multiple carrier strike groups, while establishing necessary supply flows, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine said at the Pentagon.

“And the flow of forces continues today. In fact, [Commander of U.S. Central Command Adm. Brad] Cooper will receive additional forces even today,” Caine said.

Asked how many troops are currently involved and how many are expected to be sent, Caine declined to be specific.

But he said “more tactical aviation” is entering the theater, and added, “I think we’re just about where we want to be in terms of total combat capacity and total combat power.”

Hegseth then responded to a question about Trump’s remark Sunday that the operations could last around four weeks.

“It’s the typical, typical NBC sort of gotcha-type question,” Hegseth said.

“President Trump has all the latitude in the world to talk about how long it may or may not take. Four weeks, two weeks, six weeks. It could move up. It could move back. We’re going to execute at his command the objectives we’ve set out to achieve,” Hegseth said.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/02/us-...TDbAAB3--T_Rw_aem_jxBL-LQqiCsbjiZ5I2Ht6Q

Trump is the one who made the claim it would be for to five weeks. A follow up question to a timeline statement trump made isn't a "typical, typical NBC sort of gotcha-type question"

But then it's Kegsbreath so there's that.

I did Nazi that coming. It certainly didn't age well.....

Forget the illegality of the war. . .

I wonder what success actually looks like? In 5 years 10 years. Next year.

Other than the distraction from the Epstein files, the mid terms, the tariffs ... Do we think a new western friendly government is needed for it to be a success? A new regime that isn't as quite as bad as the one they are replacing ?

Even the most ardent fanboy will accept Trump is a short term, shallow thinking strategist who then shifts things on the fly and BS's his way through what ever crap follows... So does anyone think there's an end game? Pete Hemsworth just said boots on ground are an option... Is that good? Is that what the Republicans want.

As before I'm also still interested in which other bad dictators around the globe do we need to remove and which other countries should we start a war with ??

I'm a bit surprised that Hegseth didn't respond "TDS TDS TDS" .... it's the normal response from fanboys that have no answer to holding Trump accountable for the things he says and does.

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pe...ama-era-clip-contradicts-trump-criticism

I swear sometimes I think that the only reason Democrats are mad about this strike on Iran is now that the Iranian regime is getting dismantled that will leave only the Democrats to chant death to America. Hypocrisy exposed from what Dems were saying in 2011 when Obama was doing the same thing.

Iran mourns 165 girls, staff killed in school strike during US-Israel war!

Iran has held a mass funeral for 165 schoolgirls and staff killed in what it has described as a United States-Israeli attack on a girls school in the southern city of Minab.

Saturday’s strike came on the first day of the joint US and Israeli attacks on Iran. It was the deadliest incident in the campaign against Tehran so far.

The Israeli military said it was not aware of any Israeli or US attacks in that area. Throughout its genocidal war on Gaza, however, Israel has repeatedly denied responsibility for deadly attacks on Palestinian civilians, only to later backtrack when evidence emerged, often describing such incidents as “accidental”.

The attack in Minab has been condemned by UNESCO and Nobel Peace Prize-winning education activist Malala Yousafzai.

Deliberately attacking an educational institution, hospital or any other civilian structure is a war crime under international humanitarian law.

On Monday, Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the two countries “continue to indiscriminately strike residential areas, sparing neither hospitals, schools, Red Crescent facilities, nor cultural monuments”.


https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2...lgirls-and-staff-killed-in-school-strike


I won't argue that the supreme leader of Iran needed gone.... That's kind of a no brainer.

But killing school age kids? This is where having experienced, Thoughtful, smart and knowledgable people in the Department of Defense would have been helpful! With Drunk Hegseth in charge, This is the kind of incompetance you get.

Do you know if that was an American,or Israeli,attack?No you don't.

"Alternative facts hurt us all. Think before you blindly believe."

This is what I expect from your kind. When did Obama do "the same thing"? Or are you trying to compare this all out regime change and bombing of a country to isolated drone strikes? You've been listening to right wing media again haven't you?

This is a full scale bombing on an entire country. Trump even told us that troops will be lost because that's what happens in war. He called it a war himself. You need congressional approval to launch a war. None of this is complicated and your lame excuses and pointing a finger in the other direction doesn't work with the exception of your own brain who simply can't grasp the obvious here.

Because somewhere in that scrambled egg head of yours you call expecting a president to follow the law in getting congressional approval to start a war as the constitution calls for is saying "Death to America"? Dear Lord man. seek help.

What you're advocating is death to the constitution. There's a lot of that going around these days.

The only "death to America" I'm seeing in all this are the corpses of 6 dead U.S. troops. And the democrats didn't send them there. trump did.

For the trumpians to consider.........

Trump went on and before bombing Iran about how we couldn't allow Iran to get any nukes. That the goal was to prevent this from happening. To take out any nuclear weapons programs or development. What was the first thing done when the bombing started? A total attack to wipe out the government. Telling the people of Iran he would take care of that end of things and that Iranians can now take over and replace their government.

Now what is the reason for pointing that out? It's to point out that his main and first priority was not to bomb nuclear sites. Not to wipe out their nuclear program. But to cause a regime change. Now I get it. A lot of you don't care if trump lies to you. You don't care if he deceives everyone as long as you get what you and he wants in the end. None of that matters anymore. But more people care than don't. And before you start your BS that this isn't true, I will keep this simple for you so you can get it...................

Little Donny tells his mom there is no fruit in the house. Little Donny says he needs fruit to maintain a healthy diet. He asks his mom if she will take him to the store so they can buy some fruit. His mom thinks it's wonderful that Little Donny is so health conscious so she happily agrees to take Little Donny to the grocery store to get some fruit.

As soon as they walk into the door at the grocery Little Donny heads the opposite direction away from the produce department, straight down the candy aisle and starts grabbing bags of candy off the shelves.

It wasn't fruit Little Donny wanted at all. It was the candy. Little Donny lied to his mom. Little Donny is a liar and a bad boy.

I would expect you to be waving the Irain flag soon huh!!! I mean you're kind in the last year or so have waved the Ukraine, Gaza, Mexica, Venezuelan flags. I am sure there have been more. Your side takes sides for every country but our own.

j/c...

This just shows how low you will stoop to undermine someone for advocating our president follows the constitution. But you are a prime example to show that's where we are now. Instead of discussing the topic you go off on some right wing rant. So typical of you.

I had no idea supporting we help stop Russia from invading a democracy was a bad thing. Only in trumplandia.

Where is Mexica? I've never heard of it?

And yes, I object to anyone that carpet bombs entire neighborhoods killing tens of thousands of innocent civilians. I also object to terrorists committing a slaughter against innocent people at a concert. Both things can be true at the same time. Anyone committing terrorist acts or genocide is wrong.

You still can't get it through your head can you? Supporting innocent victims no matter where they live is not supporting their government. Try to let that sink in for a change.

The only reason "I don't know" is because I don't trust anything trump says. But let's not pretend this is coming from the media. The media is doing nothing more than looking at what trump says and reporting on it. Trump himself is taking credit for it. So are you trying to say we shouldn't trust what the media says or we shouldn't trump says? Or both?


And at this same link he once again made it plain what this is which he did not get congressional approval for.....

When asked about his statement earlier in the day that there would be more American casualties.

"It’s war and you have casualties in war," he said.

There are a lot of quotes I can provide you with where trump takes direct credit for killing these Iranian government officials if you would like to see them. I just felt this should suffice.

Whatever adjustment you just made to your medication... that ain't it.

After Trump's total non-sensical threat of stopping trade with Spain - here is Spain's response which is pretty much on point.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/mar/04/europe-latest-news-updates-pedro-sanchez-spain-nato-eu?filterKeyEvents=false&page=with%3Ablock-69a7e8ff8f085ed1e38a504d

“A war that, in theory, was said to be waged to eliminate Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction, bring democracy, and guarantee global security, but which, in reality, seen in retrospect, produced the opposite effect. It unleashed the greatest wave of insecurity our continent has suffered since the fall of the Berlin Wall.”

“It is absolutely unacceptable that those leaders who are incapable of fulfilling this duty use the smokescreen of war to hide their failure and, in the process, line the pockets of a select few – the same ones as always; the only ones who profit when the world stops building hospitals and starts building missiles.”

“The government of Spain stands with those it must stand with. It stands with the values that our parents and grandparents enshrined in our constitution.

Spain stands with the founding principles of the European Union. It stands with the Charter of the United Nations. It stands with international law and, therefore, stands with peace and peaceful coexistence between countries and their harmonious coexistence.

We stand with many other governments that share our views, and with millions of citizens throughout Europe, North America, and the Middle East, who ask not for more war or uncertainty, but more peace and prosperity. Because the former only benefits a few. And the latter benefits us all.”

"War is the most profitable business on earth." — Kenneth Eade.
"War against a foreign country only happens when the moneyed classes think they are going to profit from it." — George Orwell.
"War is hugely profitable. It creates so much money because it's so easy to spend money very fast. There are huge fortunes to be made. So there is always an encouragement to promote war and keep it going, to make sure that we identify people who are 'others' whom we can legitimately make war upon" - Roger Waters

Again - for those waving pom-poms and cheering this illegally started war - what does success look like? If removing bad leaders from office is your agenda which other countries do you want USA to spend money and lives removing ... and please do not tell me you believe Iran was close to having nuclear weapons.

I'm not trying to excuse what is going... it's simply another example of Trump not respecting rules and laws.

But (once again) it's a bit hypocritical to call out Trump for not going to Congress prior to kicking off a war. Yes, this is the most egregious example of a President not fulfilling the Constitutional mandate of gaining Congressional approval prior to war... and yes, past Presidents at least gave it the window-dressing of calling it something other than war.... but the honest truth is that Trump is doing the same thing that past presidents have done and experienced little to no accountability. This is just another example of our toothless Congress not doing their job and then not holding other branches accountable when they break rules to get around it.

Well there is the Congress angle for sure, but as far as international law is concerned, this is an illegal war that was started. That is not refutable. I think it's article 51 of the UN charter or something like that.

I don't disagree with you that presidents have done this before. Both Vietnam and Korea first come to mind. The thing is we and the world at large understood that's what happened. It was called out and judged as being wrong and actually bordered on criminal.

The thing is we are supposed to learn from history. We are supposed to use it as an example of what not to allow to happen again. All you really said IMO is "presidents have done wrong before so it's not like the first time." And all that really means is we have learned nothing from history if actions are not taken to stop him.

Now in case there is any confusion, as much as I disagree with what trump is doing in Iran, what I'm calling for is a vote in congress to either green light these actions or not. The normal, legal process required for war.

Even if congress approves it I think the American people deserve to know where each of them stand on the matter officially. Elections are coming in November.

Christian nationalism is surfacing in the war on Iran in a shocking way

Some military commanders are reportedly calling the war “biblically sanctioned” and a path to the end times.

President Donald Trump can’t get his story straight on why he launched a war against Iran. But some commanders in the U.S. military are apparently telling service members that they’re on a mission to fulfill biblical prophecy.

The independent journalist Jonathan Larsen reported that the Military Religious Freedom Foundation has received more than 110 complaints from service members about their commanders’ religious gloss on the war on Iran. These complaints, according to Larsen’s report, came from every branch of the military, across more than 40 different units, situated in at least 30 military installations. (The Pentagon did not respond to Larsen’s request for comment.)

MRFF president Michael Weinstein told Larsen that the complaints from service members shared a common feature: Commanders are describing the war as “biblically sanctioned” and “clearly the undeniable sign of the expeditious approach of the fundamentalist Christian ‘End Times’ as vividly described in the New Testament Book of Revelation.”

Weinstein added, “Many of their commanders are especially delighted with how graphic this battle will be, zeroing in on how bloody all of this must become in order to fulfill and be in 100% accordance with fundamentalist Christian end of the world eschatology.”

In the absence of any clear explanation from the White House on the purpose of this war, it appears some military leaders may be filling the vacuum with the idea that the United States is on a providential mission that could help bring about “the end times” as prophesied in the Bible. The reported comments track with a Christian Zionist worldview. As Sarah Posner, a journalist and expert on right-wing Christian extremism, explained for MS NOW:

For many “Christians Zionists,” and particularly for popular evangelists with significant clout within the Republican Party, their support for Israel is rooted in its role in the supposed end times: Jesus’ return to Earth, a bloody final battle at Armageddon, and Jesus ruling the world from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. In this scenario, war is not something to be avoided, but something inevitable, desired by God, and celebratory.

That some military commanders are reportedly selling American aggression on Iran as a holy war is deeply alarming. Weinstein told Larsen that the complaints violate the Constitution’s separation of church and state. But regardless of its legality, telling American troops that they’re fighting for a Christian god against a Muslim country is medieval madness. It isn’t the role of the U.S., per the Constitution, to promote any religion over another. Furthermore, the reported remarks from these commanders is likely to prompt U.S. service members to dehumanize Iran’s population, and help set the stage for viciousness in combat and human rights violations. The military is not supposed to be a crusading political-theological movement, but a professional defense force.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth bears responsibility. He has led Christian prayer services at the Pentagon. He has attended a Christian media convention where he has traced the U.S.’s origins to the Bible and railed against “dangerous and godless foreign ideologies that sow doubt, confusion and death.” He has invited a pastor to lead a worship service at the Pentagon who, according to CNN, “supports repealing women’s right to vote and believes homosexuality should be a crime.” He openly affiliates with an ultraconservative church associated with Christian nationalism, the idea that the U.S. should be a Christian nation and that its government should take steps to advance that ideal. If any military officers were looking for excuses to make combat with Iran about politics and religion, then Hegseth has given them license to do so.

All war is hell. But unnecessary war surely constitutes a special ring of hell — who wants to die on a battlefield for no particular reason? Perhaps some will find respite in the idea that the whole thing is secretly ordained by God. But such a belief will not redeem this gratuitous violence. There’s nothing that can make the U.S.’s war on Iran holy.

https://www.ms.now/opinion/iran-war-christian-nationalism-hegseth-military-religious-freedom

Onward Christian soldiers?