A map was posted this morning on one of the sites I frequent (NY Times), showing where the fleet is currently anchored next to Iran. There’s two destroyers on the east end of the Strait of Hormuz. And what’s going on there? Iran is conducting “live fire exercises” in the strait, warning shipping to avoid the area (play with oil prices? Nah. Existential desperation).

What happens next? Somebody shoots, somebody gets hit, somebody gets blasted back to the dark ages. Then what happens? Ah…there’s the rub. What is Iran without the Republican Guard or the Ayatollah? A bit chaotic, I’d say. Just ‘assuming’ someone will rise to the fore (as poor little Marco opined yesterday before the Congressional committee discussing Venezuela), is just plain folly. How many more things can he break?

And what’s happening with the Peace Board? The new development plan for Gaza (golly, gotta rebrand that real estate: how about Trump on the Med? Even Bibi has been quiet lately.)

And then there’s all these trade deals going on between Canada and China, the UK and China, India and the EU, everybody and everybody else: except US. They may not amount to much, but in November, the trade deficit was the greatest in two decades for US. Tariffs were supposed to fix that. But how? If it’s too expensive, you don’t buy it. Americans, looking for a bargain, buy Chinese; buy Mexican; buy Canadian. Find ways to evade the tariffs. More madness.

Nothing he’s done has worked. Nothing. And yet, he continues with his nihilistic actions that just keep us following that downward trajectory. How does all this end? I think you know. How can we prepare for it? Can’t. Then what do we do? Phanees says just document and later on – likely much later on – it will be testimony at the new Nuremberg. I take little consolation from that notion.

There’s a nation wide strike being called for this weekend. Don’t buy. I had to hear about it from Phanees. Nothing apparent in all my media. But it’s out there. There’s another “No Kings” demonstration planned for March. Gotta go to that one. See you there?