@louisefoster
@SfpLouise on X, much prefer to be here! Anti Brexit, pro immigration, humanist, (actually Marxist), studied & am passionate about politics & economics. Hate current journey of travel in UK, US & on X. Diminished by Long Covid, Fibro, ME & PoTS.
So, Johnson, Farage, Badenoch, the Telegraph… howl about the UK being “an irrelevance on the world stage”.
Remind me again who decided to isolate us with a strategically and economically idiotic Brexit, relying on a trade deal with the US to save us from exactly the kind of weakness they now bemoan.
US tax dollars at work: Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) estimates >200 billion dollars (economic impacts and indirect losses) if this war lasts 4-5 weeks
(not to mention countless lost lives and the sacrifice of Americans in a war in which they have لا في العير ولا في النفير )
Dahiyeh is being decimated. Seems their goal is obliteration. The world must step in, support Macron’s efforts. This is a mass displacement, a war crime.
Timeline cleanser
Handsome street cats of Tehran
Circa 2023
A map of the Strait of Hormuz showing real time shipping. There are many red dots (representing tankers) stacked either side of it.
Look at all the tankers stacked up either side of the Strait of Hormuz.
@chadbourn.bsky.social
Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump + We just concluded a very good meeting with the largest U.S. Defense Manufacturing Companies where we discussed Production and Production Schedules. They have agreed to quadruple Production of the "Exquisite Class" Weaponry in that we want to reach, as rapidly as possible, the highest levels of quantity. Expansion began three months prior to the meeting, and Plants and Production of many of these Weapons are already under way. We have a virtually unlimited supply of Medium and Upper Medium Grade Munitions, which we are using, as an example, in Iran, and recently used in Venezuela. Regardless, however, we have also increased Orders at these levels. The Companies represented were the CEOs of BAE Systems, Boeing, Honeywell Aerospace, L3Harris Missile Solutions, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon. The meeting concluded with another meeting scheduled in two months. States all over the Country are bidding for these new Plants. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP
Another one not written by Trump but which shows how much he’s been stung by the analysis that the US is running out of munitions.
Can’t be a big bully if you’ve only got a tiny stick.
Speaking of ground troops, time for a geography lesson🤓
The magnificent Iranian plateau is super rugged with massive northeast & southwest running mountain ranges with both ice and (rare) salt glaciers but also two expansive salt deserts (one being one of the hottest spots on earth)
The reason we have “stupid rules of engagement” is to make sure we don’t bomb elementary schools.
Screenshot of a social post by President Donald J. Trump that says: 'There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER! After that, and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s), we, and many of our wonderful and very brave allies and partners, will work tirelessly to bring Iran back from the brink of destruction, making it economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before. IRAN WILL HAVE A GREAT FUTURE. “MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN (MIGA!).” Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP'
Nothing says ‘serious foreign policy’ like inventing a new MAGA slogan for another country.
Absolutely insupportable. Labour have a massive majority. It’s a hugely popular issue. To fail to act would be a dereliction of historic proportions, and utterly inexplicable.
I think we should allow Trump to choose Iran’s next leader as long as the rest of us can choose America’s. Because it’s clearly far too important a job to be left in the hands of Americans.
Obviously we should do everything we can to bring home British nationals stranded in UAE and other Middle East countries. But I hope that once they get home they’ll have better understanding of people who flee war zones where the bombing is far, far worse. And not write articles vilifying refugees.
Opera is not dying, Timothée, it's thriving. In Europe alone, 14m a year attend (2.5m under 25s) worth €10bn. Since 2000 La Traviata had 30,000 performances. In its lifetime it's been seen by half a billion people and recorded 291 times. Check back in 180yrs to see how Marty Supreme is doing, yeah?
Sánchez: “You may have heard that Spain is alone. They’re the same people who said that when we recognized the State of Palestine, and then others followed.
“We are not alone — we are the first. Those who will end up alone are the ones defending the indefensible.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez: “A country that always defends human rights and international law, like Spain, earns the respect of the entire world, as has happened in recent weeks.”
Iranian missile and drone attacks currently underway in Qatar, Bahrain and UAE.
Tucker Carlson on Iran: “Trump is being shown polling that this war is like a 90–10 win for him.
“I don't know where that polling is coming from. He is getting fake polling; I guess they are only polling Hannity's viewers or something.”
Carlson makes a good point. Trump is easily manipulated.
Donald J. Trump C @realDonaldTrump Iran, which is being beat to HELL, has apologized and surrendered to its Middle East neighbors, and promised that it will not shoot at them anymore. This promise was only made because of the relentless U.S. and Israeli attack. They were looking to take over and rule the Middle East. It is the first time that Iran has ever lost, in thousands of years, to surrounding Middle Eastern Countries. They have said, "Thank you President Trump." I have said, "You're welcome!" Iran is no longer the "Bully of the Middle East," they are, instead, "THE LOSER OF THE MIDDLE EAST," and will be for many decades until they surrender or, more likely, completely collapse! Today Iran will be hit very hard! Under serious consideration for complete destruction and certain death, because of Iran's bad behavior, are areas and groups of people that were not considered for targeting up until this moment in time. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP
A child speaks.
Trump doesn’t want Americans to know they’re in danger because he’ll look bad.
Iraqi Kurdish politician Bafel Talabani on Fox: “Iranians, like many people, are very nationalistic.
“If they believe that Kurdish forces coming from outside the country could split or fragment Iran, it might actually unite the population against what they would view as a separatist movement.”
More Israeli airstrikes in Tehran and central Iran overnight targeting military sites, including an underground ballistic missile factory and a military academy, the IDF says. (Times of Israel)
How to win friends and influence people.
This is also worth a read on Paul Marshall’s right wing ecosytem which exists to back a populist right wing takeover of the UK, whether it’s in Conservative or Reform clothing app.thenewworld.co.uk/story/143582...
3/3 And meanwhile, a new superpower, one that enacts its own internal atrocities & oppressions, but never did colonise the wider world or carry out the Holocaust or trans-Atlantic slavery, sits and watches as the USA hastens the West’s decline by indulging Trump’s every narcissistic, ignorant urge.
2/3 A few billionaires, irrevocably invested in the climate crisis, hoard more wealth than many countries and use it to buy up media so they can persuade the people to direct their ire at the world’s poorest and most vulnerable- those who have left the one home they have for fear or poverty.
