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#81
USS Boxer The Second Amphibious Assault Ship Now Heading To Middle East (Updated)
With two Amphibious Ready Groups heading to the Middle East, there is increasing speculation that the U.S. will try to seize Iran's strategic Kharg Island.
Where the 'sunk cost' argument becomes literally true. 5,000 Marines can seize a specific objective, like Kharg Island (approx. 8 sq. miles). But they will not "hold the door open" across the straight. They will be a landing party that becomes a stationary target once they hit the beach. Marines able to watch retaliatory missiles going into Ras Tanura as they wish upon a star.
On Truth Social today (March 20, 2026), Trump claimed the U.S. is "very close to meeting objectives", and that operation Epstein Fury is nearing completion. Simultaneously, the Pentagon has accelerated the deployment of the 11th MEU (USS Boxer) to join the 31st MEU (USS Tripoli). Lies lies and more lies is what Trump delivers.
#82
Ecology / Global heating weather
Last post by K-Dog - Mar 20, 2026, 06:39 PM
Cyclone Narelle: 'Compact,' dangerous and unusually predictable
Tropical Cyclone Narelle is currently a very dangerous Category 5 storm, sitting off the Far North Queensland Coast some 350 kilometers northeast of Cooktown. Formed in the Coral Sea, Narelle is packing a punch, with sustained winds near the center of 205km per hour and wind gusts to 285km per hour.
‘500mm’: Grim forecast, NT braces for cyclone
Tropical Cyclone Narelle is re-intensifying and is set to bring another 24 hours of misery as it makes straight for built up areas.
The Coral Sea recorded its hottest December (2025) and February (2026) on record. These record-breaking sea surface temperatures provided the "high-octane fuel" necessary for Narelle to rapidly intensify to Category 5.
#83
Iran downs US F-35: First combat hit on most advanced 'Invisible' stealth jet mid-air
This marks the first time Iran has struck a US aircraft in the late February war. Both the US and Israel deploy F-35s in the conflict; each jet costs over $100 million.
Had the plane actually landed the incident would never have made the news. At all. The plane crashed, and the Department of War made truth it's first casualty. As evidenced by unrealistic casualty reports.
#84
American labor / Peak Oil
Last post by K-Dog - Mar 20, 2026, 05:54 PM
A Right to Full-Time Scheduling
A policy for pushing back against the scourge of involuntary part-time jobs.
No way will employers voluntarily relinquish real-time scheduling.
#85
Peak oil / The Worst-Case Economic Outcom...
Last post by RE - Mar 20, 2026, 12:39 AM
The Worst-Case Economic Outcome of Trump’s Iran War
The risk of falling into a doom loop like this was apparent the moment the Strait of Hormuz was effectively shut down, and oil prices shot up. But many hoped the strait might quickly reopen and the shock would be short-lived. That hasn’t happened. And there’s now no way we can return to the antebellum status quo quickly—or perhaps ever. That’s because, in a significant escalation, both sides in the conflict have now started targeting energy infrastructure. On Wednesday, Israel bombed Iran’s South Pars gas field, the largest natural gas field in the world and a major lifeline for Iran.3 Subsequently, Iran attacked the world’s largest LNG facility (located in Qatar, whose LNG exports will as a result be down by almost a fifth for up to five years) and it has targeted a host of other natural resources, refineries, and other processing facilities in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Israel. (The AP put together this useful map of major energy infrastructure sites that have been hit so far.) Destroying fuel-producing infrastructure is fundamentally different from temporarily blocking a fuel transit passageway. When infrastructure is gone, it’s gone. It could take years to rebuild.
Not sure this article describes the "Worst Case Scenario", more like just an easily predictable bad one. Escalation to Global Thermonuclear War is certainly a possibility, and that would definitely be worse. A 5 year recession would be bad for sure, but a decade long Global Depression would be worse. Higher food prices would be bad, but a Global Famine with half the worlld population dying of starvation would be just a little worse, don't ya think?
Are any of these LIKELY outcomes right now? No, but the chances have definittly risen from minute to significant and are worth considering as worst case scenarios.
At this point, I can't see ANY way "normal" pre-war shipping will return inside the next year, and quite possibly never. That will significantly reduce the flow of oil from the gulf and keep the prices high until the demand crashes, which it must once the consumers are fully tapped out. Oil production facilities that manage to survive undamaged will have to be shut in.
Somewhere along the timeline there will be a credit crisis as bankruptcies pile up, followed by bank failures. This kind of thing is bad enough when it is just resultant from malinvestment in one sector like real estate, or a confined area like southern Europe, but when it's global and across all sectors it's a pretty hopeless situation. Maybe the Smartest Guys in the Room can find a Magic Bazooka, but it will surprise me if they do.
At most, I think we're 6 months away from a financial crisis that will make 2008 pale in comparison. I could be wrong of course, wouldn't be the first time. Not looking good though.
RE
#86
Eat the rich / It's the Rich Stupid
Last post by K-Dog - Mar 19, 2026, 10:52 PM
I Will Not Help Manufacture Consent for Your Imperial War of Aggression
In 2011 Iran imported 1,200 troops along with armored vehicles from Saudi Arabia to ruthlessly crush protestors, ultimately resulting in 122 deaths with reports of torture and abuse of detained protestors. Oh wait, that was Bahrain, who is a U.S.
This article is imported from the Doomscroll creating a trackback there. In the article there is a video. "Skip to 5:30 in the video to see the segment about Trump, but the whole thing is worth the time."
That is a quote from the article, and if the whole video was not worth the time I would not have added the article here.
#87
Crazy times / The madman
Last post by K-Dog - Mar 19, 2026, 09:20 PM
The Donald Trump of Ancient Greece
His name? Alcibiades. Like Trump, this scion of wealth loved to win and manipulate the masses.
Trump as Alcibiades: Lessons in Demagoguery from Greek History
In 2017, America may again need to be mindful of both dangerous potential futures and telling ancient precedent. The surprising election of President Donald Trump brought historical precedent flowing back to the minds of many Americans.
Trump and the ghost of Alcibiades
William J Dominik compares Donald Trump to the Athenian general Alcibiades and shows how both weakened democracy while pursuing power.
Alcibiades’ Trump Card: The Political Masquerades of Masculinity
What Thucydides shows is that when masculinity is in crisis, the speaker who seems most masculine will prevail — even if his ideas are irrational.
Drunk with power, Donald Trump follows the dictates of Athenian commanders, and a certain Jewish philosopher
The strong do what they can, the weak suffer what they must.
The Sicilian Expedition and the Dilemma of Interventionism
During the Peloponnesian War, Athenian statesmen were divided over a proposed intervention into Sicily. Alcibiades and his camp were overly confident of Athens's prospects in this military expedition, arguing, "How could anybody ever defeat us? We're Athens!" However, the elder general and statesman Nicias foresaw problems with Athenian intervention. Nicias told Alcibiades that the best way to demonstrate Athenian power to the Sicilians was not to intervene at all. Ultimately, the Sicilian Expedition went forward, and Athenian expeditionary forces were obliterated in battle.
QuoteAthenian expeditionary forces were obliterated in battle.
A fragile democracy gave power to a man who viewed the state as a stage for his own personal psychodrama and was ruined. Rinse and repeat.
#88
Quote from: K-Dog on Mar 19, 2026, 08:19 PMAs RE has pointed out. Multiple airstrikes on bases yesterday, and America loses no soldiers. It is hard to believe. Very hard to believe. Yet there are many true believers.
It does not surprise me that no casualties besides the dozen or so thhat were reported from the fueling plane crash have been reported by the FSoA military. What I do find slightly surprising is that nobody in the media has even questioned it. It's the elephant in the room nobody has noticed.
Also bothering me is the language used when the corpses were returned. Every time it is mentioned they use the words "dignified transfer". Have dead grunts ever been returned in an "undignified" manner? Why is it so important to mention the ceremony was dignified?
The fact NO casualties are being reported lead me to suspect there are quite a few. Obviously this goes against the narrative we can win these thing with no dead bodies with surgical precision AI directed robots. You can't keep this covered up forever, and when it does start to leak out the effect will be worse. If the marines go running up the beach. it will be a fucking disaster.
RE
#89
Electrons for Moloch / Power goes out on entire islan...
Last post by K-Dog - Mar 19, 2026, 08:41 PM
Defend Cuba From US Efforts to Crush It
The U.S. government under Trump and Rubio is intensifying its decades-long economic blockade of Cuba to deliberately create conditions of starvation and collapse.
The barbaric and lethal executive order signed on January 29, 2026, is economic warfare. Trump deliberately engineers starvation and collapse. I am so glad I never voted for this cretin. If I had ever voted for him I think I would have to get off my ass and atone for my mistake in some way.
So it is good I never made that mistake. I'll leave it for others to do the atoning.
Trump Can’t Blockade Love: Why I’m Going to Cuba
Bombs have not fallen, but Trump’s economic warfare is killing children and causing deep suffering for the people of this island nation.
Russian Oil Ships Bound for Cuba: A Defiant Move Against U.S. Energy Blockade
The Russian oil tanker, 'Anatoly Kolodkin', owned by the state-run shipping company Sovcomflot and under sanctions from the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom, is en route to the Matanzas oil terminal with a cargo of 730,000 barrels of crude. This significant energy shipment to Cuba marks the first in over two months, with an expected arrival on Monday, March 23.
Cuba has been without oil since January 9, following Mexico's last delivery. After Nicolás Maduro was apprehended in an operation sanctioned by Trump on January 3rd.
#90
QuoteIt goes against the narrative that Iran has been crippled by the barrage of American/Israel airstrikes.
Anything that goes against their narrative of total annihilation is an admission of defeat because the 'regime' is still in power and the straight is closed. Defeat will not be admitted. Trump always blames someone else. But since there is nobody else to blame, Trump has to frame what has happened so far as a smoking awesome victory or man up. Trump manning up to anything is like asking for rain on a sunny day. And that also goes for anyone bewitched by his greatness. Doubling down is Trumps only viable survival strategy. Trump is going to double down our asses into a nuclear winter.
As RE has pointed out. Multiple airstrikes on bases yesterday, and America loses no soldiers. It is hard to believe. Very hard to believe. Yet there are many true believers.