Lone Candle
Champion of Truth
The Arab world remains very divided because loyalty to tribe and clan remains important.
The Arab world is pulled by three horses in different directions: tribal culture, Islam, and modernism.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVeRnP2sE0U
How Special Forces Actually Rescued the Pilot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4K8381dCBc
“About six months before the first U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, the Trump administration gutted the Bureau of Energy Resources (ENR), an 80-person team within the State Department tasked with leading international energy diplomacy. The cuts were part of the then Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative to reduce the federal workforce, with the goal of slashing the federal budget.
More than a month into the conflict—with President Donald Trump indicating he will redouble attacks on Iran in the coming weeks—former ENR officials are warning DOGE eliminated key roles that would have helped the administration navigate and mitigate the energy chaos of the conflict and its impact on global oil markets, as well as foresee potential consequences of ongoing actions.
Fortune spoke with two former ENR officials—who wished to remain anonymous out of fear of retribution from the department—who are sounding the alarm on the insights and knowledge the federal government has lost as a result of the cuts, especially during a period of widespread oil and energy disruptions.
“It’s shocking how poorly prepared the administration is,” one former employee told Fortune. “You took away the people with the expertise and contacts who would be insanely useful in this context.””
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/shocking-poorly-prepared-administration-doge-082100372.html
“In internal deliberations before the war’s launch, Hegseth had pointed to Iran’s muted reaction to Trump’s past attacks as evidence that calibrated force could impose costs on Tehran without triggering a broader war. Hegseth “was caught off guard. There’s no question,” says a person familiar with his thinking.”
If this is true, it is the height of incompetency. The US and Israeli attacks were not limited, they assassinated the leader of the country! The most likely response from Iran would be huge. Yet, the Trump administration seemed to have not expected this.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/inside-trumps-search-way-iran-162338760.html
Iran Just Shot Down Two US Jets – War Enters Deadly New Phase
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajqAOwPGcLQ
Mission creep.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6E7NMEgPZ_Q
The Iran war may be pushing the US into recession. It could cost the US economy 200 billion, or even a trillion, dollars.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYcacsfqrq0
$750M Destroyed: How Russia Assisted Iran’s Biggest Strike of the War So Far
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqQ_bNXhnIo
“Officials from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain have conveyed in private conversations that they do not want the military operation to end until there are significant changes in the Iranian leadership or there’s a dramatic shift in Iranian behavior, according to the officials, who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.”
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/gulf-allies-privately-case-trump-213824075.html
John Bolton believes Trump made many mistakes in this war, although he is for war to change the Iranian regime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSR3HmI3z1E