The other thread got locked - while we are still ongoing with the 'War' .... there's stuff going on every day it seems, whether it's negotiations, threats, blockades or watching Chinese ships sail thru the blockade. Figure a new thread is warranted.
Question at this point - same as the original question/comment: What is the objective for the USA? Does anyone actually know? Does anyone think Trump knows? Or are we at a point Trump is trying to end this with no more loss of face and embarrassment, but he doesn't know how?
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.
If the USA applies the blockade to all countries attempting to move oil and gas out of the straits of hormuz, it will speed up the process to reach an agreement, imo.
If the USA chooses to make side deals for some counties, the blockaide will end up being a mess, imo.
The USA isn't going to initiate or block a Russian, Chinese or Indian vessel. A Chinese vessel sailed thru after the announcement already. Saudi Arabia is getting antsi ... All Trump continues to do is prove the US is unstable and push former allies away while paving the way for China to look stable and a more attractive partner. Coming soon .... De-dollarization and loss of US $ power and influence
Last edited by mgh888; 04/15/2604:01 PM.
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.
The USA isn't going to initiate or block a Russian, Chinese or Indian vessel. A Chinese vessel sailed thru after the announcement already. Saudi Arabia is getting antsi ... All Trump continues to do is prove the US is unstable and push former allies away while paving the way for China to look stable and a more attractive partner. Coming soon .... De-dollarization and loss of US $ power and influence
At least that is what some hope for. This country is turning communist. Now you have states looking to make citizens pay "bail" before they can move out of state.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
According to you communists have been asking over forever. It seems as if that's what you call anyone and everyone who promotes helping people over big business.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Is that what you call the millions of people who live in states where wages are so low they receive government benefits? I would have thought at some point you would have gotten tired of your tax dollars paying corporate welfare but I guess not.
While corporations rake in billions your tax dollars pay for their employees benefits. You're paying for those profits. And then you call others communists?
I have a better idea. Maybe instead of "helping freeloaders" we just let their children starve and go homeless or build orphanages for millions of children? How does that sound to you?
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Here's the latest • Strait of Hormuz: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the vital trade chokepoint is now open to all commercial vessels for the remaining period of the truce, adding that this is in line with the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire.
• Ceasefire in effect: A 10-day truce in Lebanon appears to be holding despite the Lebanese army accusing Israel of violations. Israel said its forces would not withdraw from southern Lebanon, and Iran-backed Hezbollah warned it would only abide by the truce if Israeli attacks stopped.
• Diplomacy push: US President Donald Trump said a White House meeting between Israel and Lebanon could take place within two weeks. The conflict with Hezbollah has been a key sticking point in negotiations on the war with Iran. Trump also voiced confidence that a deal with Tehran will come soon, saying talks could happen this weekend.
• Israeli embassy: British police are investigating after an unnamed group said it would target the Israeli embassy in London with drones carrying dangerous substances.
But a blockade on Iranian ports stays in effect........................
Live updates: Iran declares Strait of Hormuz 'completely open'; Trump says U.S. blockade 'will remain in full force' until peace deal
President Donald Trump hailed the news about the key waterway, and said negotiations over a peace deal with Iran "should go very quickly."
U.S. BLOCKADE REMAINS 'IN FULL FORCE': President Donald Trump hailed the news and thanked Tehran, but said the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports "will remain in full force" until the two sides reach a peace deal. Negotiations “should go very quickly," he said.
I have a better idea. Maybe instead of "helping freeloaders" we just let their children starve and go homeless or build orphanages for millions of children? How does that sound to you?
You always go to the extreme as your example. I am not going to get in to what can be done because it is pointless to talk to you.
Looks like the plan is working in Iran and the stock is back. Looks like the panicans who got out of the market lost money.
Gas probably won't go down very much in the short term. First, we are headed in to higher demand season and the refineries are sitting on millions of barrels which they paid inflated prices. They will have to sell that off reflective of the prices they paid before we start to see prices reductions at the pumps that totally reflect the current barrel costs.
It will go down some. At some point they will start to average the cost of stock on hand with the new shipments which will bring a gradual step down in price.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
I see you are once again relying on the word of a man who has from the beginning lied to you consistently. As of now everything being done in both Lebanon and Iran are based on very short term cease fires. Could it end up being settled long term? It could. But don't pretend it's over until it's over. I hope it is but according to trump we won in the first hour.
As of 2023 39% of people getting government assistance were children. Also as of 2023 33% of households getting government food assistance were on Social Security. That's 72% of people on assistance either being children or elderly. Don't blame me because I'm presenting you with facts while you have some preconceived notions that is false. But considering these facts I can see why you don't wish to discuss it any further.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Yeah...not so fast. So now this morning we have US still closing Iranian ports, the Iranians closing the strait again and firing at ships and the Israelis and Lebanon trading fire.
BREAKING: Iran Fires on Tanker Hours After Trump Announces Strait of Hormuz is Open Tommy Christopher Apr 18th, 2026, 9:20 am Share 1950 comments Iran Fires on Tanker Hours After Trump Announces Strait of Hormuz is Open screenshot
Iranian gunboats fired on an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz less than 24 hours after President Donald Trump announced the Strait was open and would never be closed again.
Friday was a big news day, as Trump announced developments in the Iran War via a series of social media posts. In addition to a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, the president said the Strait of Hormuz would be opening immediately, never to close again. As the news filtered out, media reports and Iranian sources contradicted some of Trump’s claims.
The president spoke to reporters aboard Air Force One Friday night just before landing, and began by saying he had just gotten “pretty good news” that he then refused to give any details about.
But on Saturday morning, minutes before Trump went live for a bill signing, News broke that the Iranians were firing on an oil tanker, and the U.S. was enforcing its blockade. From The Associated Press:
CAIRO (AP) — The dueling blockades in the Strait of Hormuz lurched into uncharted waters on Saturday. The United States pressed ahead with its campaign to choke off Iranian ports and Iran reversed an initial move to reopen the waterway, firing on a ship attempting to pass.
Confusion over the critical chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators expressed confidence a new deal was within reach.
Iran’s joint military command said on Saturday that “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state … under strict management and control of the armed forces.” It warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.
Two gunboats from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said on Saturday. It reported the tanker and crew as safe, without identifying the vessel or its destination. TankerTrackers.com reported vessels were forced to turn around in the strait, including an Indian-flagged super tanker, after they were fired on by Iran
Israeli gov’t sees Trump ceasefire announcement as ‘slap in face’
By Nour Odeh Reporting from Ramallah, occupied West Bank
Two things are happening: This ceasefire that was announced by Donald Trump was seen as a slap on the face to the Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and his coalition government, which were talking about occupying Lebanese territory all the way to the Litani River.
And then you had that social media post from the US president basically telling Israel that enough was enough with the air strikes. However, nobody – not the US, not Secretary of State Rubio – has asked Israel to withdraw from the territory that it already occupies. So that is the only wiggle room that the current Israeli government has to justify to its public, which is furious with the government, that it’s still doing something to make good on its promise to provide security.
The Israeli government was so overconfident. Just a few days ago, it was talking about forcing the Lebanese government not just to disarm Hezbollah by force, but to kick them out of the parliament, which they won elections to have membership in, to kick them out of the government as well.
And in the meantime, all of this demolition, equating the Shia-majority villages with Hezbollah infrastructure, all of that is done to appease the right-wing base in Israel, and to tell them they’re doing whatever they can to keep them safe, including that absolute decimation of the villages, turning them all to rubble, and not allowing the Lebanese residents to go back to their homes and rebuild.
The Israeli government sees Trump’s ceasefire announcement as a “slap in the face”.
Netanyahu (it is not "Israel" - something Celm once highlighted) - that has a vested and urgent need to keep the country engaged in wartime activities. We all know why. Trump & Hegseth were something of a clown show for listening to and being swayed by Netanyahu as was reported in detail (article you posted Nothlima). But we are where we are. Trump will claim a massive victory even though no such victory is real. Some will believe him no matter what. Some will try to justify the incompetence we have seen "Because" - but the facts are the facts and this was not good on any level. The only person truly happy an who has come out with benefits after this whole scenario has played out is Putin. Period.
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.
The Latest: Standoff escalates after Iran closes Strait of Hormuz over US blockade
by The Associated Press - 04/19/26 8:07 AM ET link
Iran reversed its decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and warned that it would continue to block transit through the strait as long as the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.
The escalating standoff over the critical choke point threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators expressed confidence that a new deal was within reach.
The strait is closed until the U.S. blockade is lifted, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy said Saturday night. Hours earlier, two gunboats from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. It reported that the tanker and crew were safe, without identifying the vessel or its destination.
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait and further limits would squeeze the already constrained supply, driving prices higher once again. Meanwhile, a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon appeared to be holding.
The fighting in the Middle East conflict, which is approaching the two-month mark, has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, nearly 2,300 in Lebanon, 23 civilians and 15 soldiers in Israel, and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Thirteen U.S. service members have also been killed.
That whole thing in Iran has been bungled from the start. But then what can you expect from a Bible thumping Movie buff like Hegseth.
Tell us what you would have done different...
The short answer is "not done it at all"... and by 'it', I'm talking about the decision to strike (because that was the framework of Daman's statement, as I understood it).
I'm going to assume that you meant "how would you have dealt with Iran?", because the truth is that Iran is a problem that needs to be dealt with someway, somehow. I think any military action should've been strictly scoped to nuclear development sites. That is the only remotely consistent and coherent reasoning behind what we're doing. The world wasn't completely upended when we struck their main site a couple months ago. And while their capability wasn't "completely obliterated" (or maybe it was, that assessment has varied wildly) it was affected and bought us and our dwindling collection of allies some time to lay down a better long-term plan.
... which is clearly what we need given the results so far. After having conducted a fairly comprehensive air campaign that includes degrading their air defenses, killing their leader, and striking their oil infrastructure, what have we achieved?
-realizing their military is going to be a tougher nut to crack than we hoped... especially if we decide to continue what we're doing and/or escalate -realizing their missile capability/range is significantly better than we thought -installing an even more hardline leader that picked up right where his predecessor left off -hurting the global oil market, which helps the very countries we are trying to inhibit (Iran, Russia)
Don't even get me started on what we've spent to achieve these less-than-impressive results (lives/ammo/equipment lost/spent/destroyed, alliances stressed/weakened, diminished reputation standing amongst the world).
"I'll take your word at face value. I have never met you but I assume you have a face..lol"
I think the very first thing that should have been done differently is not to lie to the American people. Allow me to frame that in the most basic of terms.
Initial strikes on Iran's nuclear capabilities was launched in June of 2025. Here s what trump said about the effectiveness of those strikes.....
During a NATO summit in June 2025, Trump stated that strikes on Iranian nuclear sites (such as Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan) were a "total obliteration," setting the program back "decades" and making it very difficult for Iran to rebuild.......................
In March of 2026, President Donald Trump stated that Iran was "two weeks away" from possessing a nuclear weapon, which he cited as the justification for U.S. military action against the country.
Now one of those things has to be a lie. Both of those statements can't possibly be true. So he was either lying back in June of 2025 or he was lying as his reasoning for starting this war.
The inability to trust anything that comes out of his mouth both by the American people, at least by those willing to pay attention, as well as the rest of the globe places everything about this war in question.
And let me remind you that Benjamin Netanyahu has a well-documented history of warning that Iran is on the verge of producing a nuclear weapon, with predictions of an "imminent" threat often cited as months away dating back to the early 1990s.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Not being swayed and led by the nose by Netanyahu.
Not alienating and insulting allies.
Not declaring victory when there was no victory.
Not threatening genocide.
Not talking out of your azz constantly.
There's lots of things to have done differently. But at the end of the day even if none of us has a better idea of what to have done it doesn't deflect from the abject incompetence that we've witnessed.
The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.
to have a clue going into this that the leverage the Iranians were going to pull closing the Strait. I can not for a second believe that our military planners didn't tell them that they would pull this card.
They did but trump ignored it. It even came from the man trump refers as "Raizin Caine"..........
Top US general warned Trump before war that Iran could close Strait of Hormuz — report
US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine warned President Donald Trump before the United States entered the war with Iran that Tehran could try to close the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Caine told the president in several briefings that US officials had long believed Iran might attempt to block the critical shipping lane using naval mines, drones and missiles if conflict erupted, according to the report.
Trump reportedly acknowledged the risk but decided to move forward with the military campaign, telling advisers he believed Tehran would likely capitulate before taking such a step, and that the US military would be capable of reopening the waterway if necessary.
trump said " Iran can’t blackmail us." by blocking the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile trump blocks all of their ports and threatens to destroy all of their infrastructure if Iran doesn't accept the terms of the deal being offered by the US.
It appears that in trumplandia blackmail is a one way street all flowing in trump's direction.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Good post, Oober. I agree with a lot of what you posted. I think some of it is a little overboard, I mean, I'm not sure we could target a mosquito in the region without it affecting the world oil market so it's silly to think we didn't see that coming.
I was speaking specifically to his statement "That whole thing in Iran has been bungled from the start." Meaning, mission has started, for whatever reason you have decided, everything from that point forward. I was hoping he would respond but knew that probably wouldn't happen before everyone else did. I don't not agree with Daman, but I'm not sure I ever have. If he saw a headline that says Trump eats babies, he would 100% believe that and repeat it without reading another word.
I just think, whether war or football, it's always easy to armchair it after the fact. I see the necessity of dealing with this bully a lot differently than most here, I'm basically sitting shotgun with 'Peen in that respect.
I won't bother arguing about it though. It's mostly futile. It baffles me that we can talk about the possibility of Iran having a nuke and many people think (me included) that would be the direst situation, read: threat to humanity by humans, that this planet has ever faced... others think it's a nothingburger. There's not really much reason for those people to try to talk it out.
to have a clue going into this that the leverage the Iranians were going to pull closing the Strait. I can not for a second believe that our military planners didn't tell them that they would pull this card.
I won't bother arguing about it though. It's mostly futile. It baffles me that we can talk about the possibility of Iran having a nuke and many people think (me included) that would be the direst situation, read: threat to humanity by humans, that this planet has ever faced... others think it's a nothingburger. There's not really much reason for those people to try to talk it out.
All while refusing to address this..............
Initial strikes on Iran's nuclear capabilities was launched in June of 2025. Here s what trump said about the effectiveness of those strikes.....
During a NATO summit in June 2025, Trump stated that strikes on Iranian nuclear sites (such as Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan) were a "total obliteration," setting the program back "decades" and making it very difficult for Iran to rebuild.......................
In March of 2026, President Donald Trump stated that Iran was "two weeks away" from possessing a nuclear weapon, which he cited as the justification for U.S. military action against the country.
Now one of those things has to be a lie. Both of those statements can't possibly be true. So he was either lying back in June of 2025 or he was lying as his reasoning for starting this war.
The inability to trust anything that comes out of his mouth both by the American people, at least by those willing to pay attention, as well as the rest of the globe places everything about this war in question.
And let me remind you that Benjamin Netanyahu has a well-documented history of warning that Iran is on the verge of producing a nuclear weapon, with predictions of an "imminent" threat often cited as months away dating back to the early 1990s.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
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