neil townsend

Lots of chatter today on US using ground troops to escalate the situation. Qeshm: the MOST strategic, but huge and difficult to hold. Full of Iranian military Kharg: gives US leverage due to oil, but well defended Abu Musa and Tunbs: iffy strategic value, but offers US plausible deniability that it did not invade Iran Because Abu Musa and Tunbs are disputed between Iran and UAE, there could be some way for US to spin that as not really that escalatory. All seems pretty risky to me. Risk-Reward is dubious at best. Market won't like any of it.

If you drive around Mississippi you’ll find 3,000 square foot homes, towns where everyone owns a boat, middle-class families with RVs, high schools with football fields, and a very costly things average people own. They just can’t convert that prosperity to health and wellbeing.

A second memo from Bari Weiss and Tom Cibrowski says CBS News Radio is shutting down. Here's the memo: Today, we informed our CBS News Radio team and approximately 700 affiliated stations that we will end the service on May 22, 2026. Unfortunately, this decision means that all positions within the CBS News Radio team are being eliminated.  We understand how difficult this news is for our staff and their colleagues, who have worked side by side with us to cover some of the most significant stories of our time. While this was a necessary decision, it was not an easy one.  A shift in radio station programming strategies, coupled with challenging economic realities, has made it impossible to continue the service.  We are sharing this announcement now to fulfill our commitments to our radio partners and affiliates, which require advance notice of the service’s conclusion. For nearly 100 years, CBS News Radio has delivered original reporting to the nation—from Edward R. Murrow’s World War II reports in London to today’s daily White House updates.  Our signature broadcast, “World News Roundup,” remains the longest-running newscast in the country.  CBS News Radio served as the foundation for everything we have built since 1927. The coming weeks will be difficult for the team members who have worked tirelessly at CBS News Radio.  We are committed to supporting these valued colleagues with care and respect as we wind down operations.  They have been critical to our success and remain treasured friends and professionals.  We thank them deeply for their contributions. Thank you all for your dedication and for the compassion you show one another as we move forward. Bari and Tom

The reason many are having trouble coming to grips with the fact that there actually IS an overarching plan/strategy is because most people are not psychopaths and as such have a hard time thinking like them...

6. Don’t be a pussy, Donnie. Bomb the tankers. Their AIS is on, they’re near Kharg. Those 1996 should be scrapped anyway. You’re doing them a favor. /rant over