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To what degree do you think the Iranian leadership's religious belief that Allah is on their side contributes to their determination?

#76 | Posted by BillJohnson

Are you saying we should trust countries with religious zealots in control?

www.democracynow.org

"The Watchdog Investigation: The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), led by Mikey Weinstein, did indeed report receiving over 200 separate complaints from active-duty service members across more than 50 military installations.

The "Armageddon" Briefing: The specific quote highlighted by Democracy Now!"where a combat unit commander allegedly told troops that "President Trump has been anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth""was first uncovered by independent journalist Jonathan Larsen. It was sourced directly from an email complaint sent to the MRFF by an active-duty non-commissioned officer (NCO) representing a group of 15 service members.

Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon Prayer Services: The segment's reference to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth bringing controversial Christian nationalist figures into the Pentagon is also well-documented. In February 2026, Hegseth invited pastor Doug Wilson"a self-described Christian nationalist who has publicly defended biblical justifications for slavery, opposed women's voting rights, and advocated for the U.S. to become a Christian theocracy"to preach at a monthly Pentagon worship service."

Again

One must consider this from Iran's perspective

Piggy unilaterally pulled out of the JCPOA while Iran was abiding by it

Iran was willing to negotiate with Piggy

Piggy attacked them in summer 2025 DURING negotiations, without warning or declaration-this is vile.

Iran began negotiations with the US again at the end of 2025 into 2026.

Once again Piggy attacked them without warning, without ANY justification. this was cowardly and despicable.

Piggy killed Iran's more moderate leader (along with infants) in a cowardly sneak attack

Piggy killed Iran's primary negotiators

Piggy and Israel BRAGGED about their ability to do the above and the successes they had doing so

Piggy regular threatens to kill MORE Iranian leaders including Iranian negotiators-he did so just last week

Piggy has threatened to end Iran's civilization.

Piggy has lies constantly about Iran's nuclear program and their nuclear capabilities and intentions

The US may ignore Piggy's threats like the meaningless bluster, but Iran doesn't.

Piggy's justifications and goals have shifted constantly over the past months, while Iran's have stayed consistent.

Piggy is allied with a genociding aggressor nation who is committing war crimes daily, who has assassinated Iranians for decades.

Iran holds leverage against regime change that if they give up will certainly come back to bite them in the ass

Iran has ZERO incentive for any deal

ESPECIALLY since Piggy has shown himself completely and utterly untrustworthy.

These are simple truths

As this conflict drags on with eye-rolling waffling updates as to its success, I'm reminded of the Powell Doctrine which got us into and successfully out of 2 military actions in Panama and Kuwait/Iraq. Got us off to a decent start in Afghanistan until that went off the rails. Say what you will about how he ended his career for GWB, Powell's doctrine was designed specifically to avoid becoming embroiled in military quagmires, using the lessons of Vietnam and even the USSR's experiences with Afghanistan.
1-Is a vital national security interest threatened? - Maybe, several reasons have been given for beginning this conflict. Difficult to assess the truth from this administration.
2-Do we have a clear attainable objective? - Unknown - again, several objectives have been stated since the conflict began. Also again, difficult to assess the truth.
3-Have the risks and costs been fully and frankly analyzed? Clearly not
4-Have all other non-violent policy means been fully exhausted? Clearly not
5-Is there a plausible exit strategy to avoid endless entanglement? Clearly not
6-Have the consequences of our action been fully considered? Clearly not
7-Is the action supported by the American people? Clearly not
8-Do we have genuine broad international support? Clearly not

Just for the hell of it, I'll answer Bill's questions to the best of my knowledge.
Does Iran have a superior military, or are its leaders simply smarter than ours? Their military is clearly not superior in strength and capability. Their leaders are certainly making ours look ridiculous.
Or is it something else? See the Powell Doctrine, above. This conflict was clearly entered into with no clear plan of objectives, no understanding of the potential consequences, no substantive risk/benefit analysis, no significant support, and clearly no effective exit strategy.
Is the US politically incapable of forcing Iran to yield? Yes. We're making the same mistakes we made in Afghanistan and Iraq-thinking we can predict or influence the behavior of people whose worldview we simply don't understand.
Is the rest of the world simply going to have to accept Iran's control over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz? Yes. We've given them the platform to demonstrate that control to the world. It's a huge advantage to Iran, why would they give it up?

Try to simplify it for me.
Does Iran have a superior military, or are its leaders simply smarter than ours?

TH: Our military is far superior. Explain how it matters. Our leaders are incredibly stupid. Relative levels of intelligence are critically important.

Or is it something else?

TH: It is something else. The primary purpose of a war is to achieve an objective. Piggy started this war with no goal. Prevent Iran from getting nukes? Regime change? Degrade their military? Unconditional surrender?
We are at the point where victory is opening the strait, which was opened before the war.

Is the US politically incapable of forcing Iran to yield?

TH: Yes.

Is the rest of the world simply going to have to accept Iran's control over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz?

TH: Yes

#47 | Posted by BillJohnson

Piggy can do nothing to force Iran to do what he wants.

christ this ---- is so freaking obvious

1. he has no objective
2. He has amateurs negotiating against seasoned, intelligent knowledgeable people. Vance Witkoff and Kushner don't know the first thing about nuclear weapons as an example.
3. There are no viable military options beyond bombing, which WILL NOT WORK
4. An invasion is completely utterly out of the question. We had numerous allies when we invaded Iraq. We have none now. We do not have the military capability to invade Iran. Iran is far larger than Iraq with NO access points. Through Iraq? HA Hussein couldn't do it against a country undergoing a revolution. From the Sea? HA operational dead end due to geography-mountains. From Pakistan? from Russia? Those are your options

ALL Iran has to do is threaten shipping and shipping stops. You understand that right? What will keep Iran from doing that?

People far smarter than understood this months ago.

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