23 Comments
User's avatar
Mick's avatar

If only other columnists had the humility to admit they got it wrong. Thank you, Stephen.

m droy's avatar

Waiting for Trump to admit he got it wrong...

Ray's avatar

We the readers admit your courage, Stephen. And to reflect that in the title. Keep going strong, fidel to the truth

Ohio Barbarian's avatar

You weren't wrong. There was such a deal available, but the Israelis rejected it and they obviously control the Trump Administration.

Marc R. Hess's avatar

Right. Little Israel controls the US government. Cry more

Ed's avatar

This is no surprise.....

The Trump Regime was losing control of the narrative. The Iranians were coming across as eminently reasonable negotiators. Votes were going to be held in both Houses of the Congress next week to constrain Trump's ability to take our nation to war against Iran. The negotiations were never serious insofar as Trump was concerned; just a way to buy time while preparations were completed for kinetic action.

There is an old saying in the military that the plan never survives once you cross the line of departure. For better or for worse, Trump (and his sidekick Bibi) own this war.

Martin's avatar

You mean Netanyahu and his poodle, Trump.

Thucycidean's avatar

You got it wrong because starting this war is really idiotic, and it's hard to imagine leadership being this stupid. But here we are.

DickyGee's avatar

You're still "echoing" the western press story that there was a "brutal crackdown" on protesters by the IRGC and security officials in response to U.S. pressures devaluing the Rial which prompted street protests. But this sanitized version of events leaves out what happened subsequently: U.S. and Israeli (CIA, Mossad)"regime-change" supported infiltrators aided by Starlink terminals for communications descended on the protests shooting both security officials and ordinary people and setting emergency vehicles on fire, etc. This externally manufactured violence (similar to the U.S. CIA engineered coup in Ukraine on the Maidan in 2014) was identified after a couple days and shut down by officials. Again, both the U.S. and Israel share a long history of covert "regime change" operations targeting Iran.

Ray's avatar

Yes, multiple waves of paid and engineered infiltration, Kurds, Balochis, Afghanis, lasting months, if not years. Oh yeah, those poor protestors out on the streets!

Dindu Nuffin's avatar

I did too. Takes a big man to admit when’s he’s wrong.

David's avatar

Stephen, you are crowing because the US is launching an unprovoked attack on Iran on behalf of Israel. You don't have a dual loyalty; you have a single loyalty, to Israel. There is no US interest in destabilising the Middle East. The genocide is continuing, with your backing.

Parti's avatar

How are the Russians supposed to trust anything the Americans are offering when it comes to Ukraine?

Negotiating to buy time, cancelling agreements at will, taking out heads of a state...doesn't sound like a democracy to me or anything one can trust.

Martin's avatar

I thought Trump had totally obliterated the nuclear threat only 8 months ago?

Ray's avatar

Yeah, that staged drama came after Israel was getting pounded, its highly layered defended airbases cratered.

Brenton's avatar

Clausewitz wrote that War takes on a logic all of its own. That statement is true now as it was when written 200 years ago. It will be interesting to see where this goes, but it is unlikely to be the way the architects in Washington and Jerusalem have predicted or anticipated. This is going to be interesting.

Nicholas Gilani's avatar

All leaders of the Islamic Republic must be eliminated for crimes against humanity—killing their own people.

Parti's avatar

Killing after killing. Very mature.

Rich's avatar

If Khamenei is dead as advertised, then Trump shoved a huge fuck you right up Obama’s nether orifice. EXACTLY what I voted for!!!!

Les Vitailles's avatar

TACO time: Trump Always Crushes Opponents

A Skeptic's avatar

Thanks for your great work Stephen!

We've restacked and shared this link on 'The Stacks'

https://askeptic.substack.com/p/the-stacks