Iraq/Iran Megathread - Latest: U.S. to close Baghdad embassy

[Santander]

Sorry if this has been addressed before, but I'm not wading through the last 40 pages to check. 

So, when Iran hit the Saudi oil facility with missiles, the Saudis took criticism for apparently failing to successfully use some anti-missile system they had bought from the US.  In fact, some US troops went to Saudi Arabia after that presumably to run the system the Saudi's couldn't. 

In Iraq, obviously some missiles hit targets on the bases, though apparently ones houses equipment rather than people.  It's been speculated that Iran specifically targeted equipment rather than troops.  Are the missiles the Iranians use that precise?  Was there no anti-missile system in place at locations housing US troops in Iraq?

Yes, it's a form of pro wrestling to allow both sides to save face and de-escalate.

[BigSerg]

ALERT

The Ukrainian flight that crashed just outside the Iranian capital of Tehran was struck by an anti-aircraft missile system, a Pentagon official, a senior U.S. intelligence official and an Iraqi intelligence official told Newsweek.

https://www.newsweek.com/iranians-shot-down-ukraine-flight-mistake-sources-1481313?amp=1

[BigSerg]

WAR CRIME!!!

cbsnews: US officials are confident Ukrainian Flt 752 was shot down by Iran: satellite detected infrared blips of 2 missile launches, probably SA-15s, followed shortly by another infrared blip of an explosion

https://twitter.com/CBSThisMorning/status/1215313078918746113?s=19

[Inmate Trump]

Would Iran have shot down this plane, and killed all those people...by accident or not...had Trump not screwed up the nuclear deal we had with them and also assassinated one of their officials?

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/ThePlumLineGS/status/1215289649675087873

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://twitter.com/Zeddary/status/1214951809078513664

[Dr Oz Lost Party!]

https://twitter.com/theplumlinegs/status/1215264418185076738?s=21

[Diabolical Materialism]

https://twitter.com/theplumlinegs/status/1215264418185076738?s=21

I really don't think the American people will take the bait for war with Iran, things have changed significantly since 2003 in how we view war in the middle east.

[GeneralMacArthur]

Republicans are turning on Mike Lee.  I was listening to conservative talk radio this morning and there was a lot of hate for him including some accusations of homosexuality.

[Libertas Vel Mors]

Mike Lee is a Communist and a Liberal smdh how dare he oppose the great leader probably secretly a homersexual too amen whats next abortion???

[Libertas Vel Mors]

That was a joke I'm not actually retarded

[Santander]

Republicans are turning on Mike Lee.  I was listening to conservative talk radio this morning and there was a lot of hate for him including some accusations of homosexuality.

Isn't it hilarious that homosexuality, not corruption, racism, hypocrisy, etc., is the thing that disqualifies a politician for the Republican base.

[Badger]

I sort of hate to say this, but Lindsay Graham et al do in fact have a point. It is true that if Iran perceives that the US is not united in backing Trump's policy towards Iran, that does put Trump's policy in a weaker position, because Iran is then aware that Trump cannot sustain a war against Iran. And this does mean that Iran, instead, is in a better position and has more room to maneuver, because it knows that Trump's actions are constrained. There is no appetite among either the American people or in Congress for a major war with Iran; this means that Iran knows that they can take actions that fall short of starting a full scale war with less risk that Trump can react overly forcefully (or at least sustain an overly forceful reaction).

However, the question is what is the problem here, and who is responsible for it?

The problem is not that the American people and members of congress are not mindlessly lining up to back Trump's policy (although it is probably a misnomer to call it a "policy"). The problem is instead that Trump was (and continues to) pursue a policy that is not sensible and that the American people do not support. So while it is true that Trump is in a weaker position than he otherwise would be because he does not have support of 80% of the American people of of Congress, that is Trump's own damn fault, and he has nobody to blame for this but himself. Not only has he made no attempt to pursue any sort of remotely sensible foreign policy with general support, but he has also taken every possible opportunity to alienate as many Americans as possible in all sorts of other areas besides foreign policy.

If Trump wants to be in a stronger position vis a vis Iran, the solution is not for the American people to just shut up and follow whatever he wants to do, but rather the solution is that Trump should instead adopt a policy that is sensible and has broad support of the American people, and can command broad support in Congress.

Of course, this would require Trump to make policy on some basis other than "I will just do the opposite of whatever Obama did simply because Obama did it and I don't like Obama," so this would never occur to him.

I would also opine that members of the American political establishment and public I like openly stating opposition towards Trump's actions is it necessary to glue a ran in that Trump can't come in wide political support for a war with Iran. Their diplomatic and intelligence scores are paid to have their pulse on American political goings ons and frankly and intelligent could deduce that Trump is to personally and politically polarizing by Nature 2 ever gather deep spread support boring another 9/11 attack or at least close to it.

In short, Democrats and members of the public openly stating a trump was wrong here doesn't tell Iran anything they didn't already know before this whole crisis started.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Republicans are turning on Mike Lee.  I was listening to conservative talk radio this morning and there was a lot of hate for him including some accusations of homosexuality.

Not a cult, right?

[Badger]

I was for the Iraq war for about a year, but listening to Chris Matthews rail against it every night finally convinced me it was a bad idea, a few weeks before we went in. It took a long time though, not just one night.

My turning against the Iraq War required learning both that the wmd Arsenal was not even exaggerated, but a complete goddamn hoax, then it was discovered that, unsurprisingly, the so-called intelligence that led to this conclusion was thoroughly cherry-picked. And then any thoughts I had about the start of the war being foolish but the end possibly being worthwhile if it somehow builds a government even approaching the standards of a liberal democracy kind of like turkey in mm. And then I saw that or occupation was f***** up completely, to the point of basically making it up gold mine for American defense contractors, and further committing such ham-handed idiotic moves such as putting college-age Heritage Foundation interns in charge of such and skilled jobs as reconstructing the Iraqi stock market oh, that the Bush Administration couldn't give a flying s*** about Iraq or it's people so long as it made jobs and money for for people in their extended political circles.

[Dr Oz Lost Party!]

https://twitter.com/theplumlinegs/status/1215264418185076738?s=21

I really don't think the American people will take the bait for war with Iran, things have changed significantly since 2003 in how we view war in the middle east.

I agree. Trump is foolish.

[President Johnson]

Republicans are turning on Mike Lee.  I was listening to conservative talk radio this morning and there was a lot of hate for him including some accusations of homosexuality.

Not a cult, right?

And Lee was considered on of the most conservative Republicans in the senate, just like Justin Amash and Mark Sanford were associated with the Tea Party. It's a cult. A toxic cult.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Apparently at least part of the reason why all-out war was averted so far was that Trump watched Tucker Carlson on Fox News.

https://twitter.com/mat/status/1215079956885073920

Tucker Carlson deserves a Nobel Peace Prize for the number of times he's prevented war.

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/woodruffbets/status/1215396624370950144

This is in response to Trump claiming that Soleimani was planning to blow up the embassy.

[KaiserDave]

Hilarious seeing the "anti-war" alt-righties on Twitter such as Cernovich and Posobeic joke about the escalation and refuse to condemn Trump.

They are racists first and foremost. They don't really care about issues minus preventing their whites crushes having sex with minorities.

As long as it's brown people getting murdered, who cares??


By the way I'm not a Nazi, just a "race realist."

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/DanielPFlatley/status/1215395882558017537

[Dr Oz Lost Party!]

https://twitter.com/DanielPFlatley/status/1215395882558017537

"dEmoCrAtS lOVe tErrOriStS!"

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Trump would rather run a media company like Fox News than be President of USA.

Had he not won in 2016, certain he would have created his own network and taking lots of Foxs talent with the bombshell scandal.

According to "Fire and Fury" such project actually existed.

[Dr Oz Lost Party!]

https://twitter.com/benjysarlin/status/1215393626341150720?s=21

[Meclazine for Israel]

By the way I'm not a Nazi, just a "race realist."

The first Nazi policy devised for segregation of, amongst other groups, the Jewish population in 1930's Germany was based on Democratic party policies regarding segregation of African slaves in the southern USA.

So i will let you fix that quote if you like.