The Gulf monarchies are unsustainable as anything other than vassal states. If they play nice with the biggest bullies, they get paid handsomely and a small fraction of them can be rich beyond reason and fly around in luxury jets with their personal organ donors.

Except now Iran is calling the bluff of the big bully, demonstrating that America and Israel won’t protect them.

Used to care for a bunch of hens. The leader hen was wicked smart.

One day, she was mad as hell. She was charging at me, screaming her head off, stopping right in front of my feet and then looking at me sideways. She started slowly walking away, and then turned around to charge at me again. She repeated this about ten times and I was bewildered.

Finally, a kid told me “I think she wants you to follow her.” So I did. She lead me to a neighbor’s house, someone who had just moved in. Finally it clicked for me. I’m like, “excuse me miss, I think my hen is filing a complaint that a new cat has moved to the neighborhood. Is your cat going to be a problem for the hens?” She answered no. So I turn to the hen and I’m like “she says it’s fine.” Hen keeps looking at me sideways for a minute and then walks back to her group.

Almond-sized dinosaur brain by the way.

It is. As a European, essentially all of Europe trusted the US until the Iran war. Proof: Sweden and Finland just recently joined NATO, and it was because we ultimately wanted to be in an alliance with the US.

But I think we finally woke up.

He’s not asking for your pity, or mine. He’s explaining why he and many other Americans are feeling helpless and are finding it difficult to mount a resistance, eventhough they know they should.

Interstingly sanctions had this same effect on the Iranian middle class. No way to revolt and replace thengovernment when your rent is double your income.