15 minutes ago, dawkins4prez said:

I don't think we are giving trump enough credit here. He has pulled Venezuela under US orbit, taking it from russia/china. And now he has degraded Iran's military capablities down to a nub. All it cost was NATO and our position as the leader of the free world...

That's like trading your franchise Qb and your entire draft for a bell cow running back and a top prospect pass rusher. And when you look at who's raking and who's bleeding their treasuries here, he also managed to blow the salary cap in the process.

Luckily, he can't actually withdraw from NATO without 2/3rd approval from the Senate. But he's done incalculable damage to our status as global leader.

1 hour ago, vikas83 said:

Luckily, he can't actually withdraw from NATO without 2/3rd approval from the Senate. But he's done incalculable damage to our status as global leader.

That won’t necessarily stop him from trying or maybe just saying he won’t contribute anything which would basically be the same thing.

52 minutes ago, Mike030270 said:

Letter from President of Iran to US people: https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/04/01/766191/pezeshkian-letter-American-people

In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

To the people of the United States of America, and to all those who, amid a flood of distortions and manufactured narratives, continue to seek the truth and aspire to a better life:

Iran—by this very name, character, and identity—is one of the oldest continuous civilizations in human history. Despite its historical and geographical advantages at various times, Iran has never, in its modern history, chosen the path of aggression, expansion, colonialism, or domination. Even after enduring occupation, invasion, and sustained pressure from global powers—and despite possessing military superiority over many of its neighbors—Iran has never initiated a war. Yet it has resolutely and bravely repelled those who have attacked it.

The Iranian people harbor no enmity toward other nations, including the people of America, Europe, or neighboring countries. Even in the face of repeated foreign interventions and pressures throughout their proud history, Iranians have consistently drawn a clear distinction between governments and the peoples they govern. This is a deeply rooted principle in Iranian culture and collective consciousness—not a temporary political stance.

For this reason, portraying Iran as a threat is neither consistent with historical reality nor with present-day observable facts. Such a perception is the product of political and economic whims of the powerful— the need to manufacture an enemy in order to justify pressure, maintain military dominance, sustain the arms industry, and control strategic markets. In such an environment, if a threat does not exist, it is invented.

Within this same framework, the United States has concentrated the largest number of its forces, bases, and military capabilities around Iran—a country that, at least since the founding of the United States, has never initiated a war. Recent American aggressions launched from these very bases have demonstrated how threatening such a military presence truly is. Naturally, no country confronted with such conditions would forgo strengthening its defensive capabilities. What Iran has done—and continues to do—is a measured response grounded in legitimate self-defense, and by no means an initiation of war or aggression.

Relations between Iran and the United States were not originally hostile, and early interactions between the Iranian and American people were not marred with hostility or tension. The turning point, however, was the 1953 coup d’état—an illegal American intervention aimed at preventing the nationalization of Iran’s own resources. That coup disrupted Iran’s democratic process, reinstated dictatorship, and sowed deep distrust among Iranians toward U.S. policies. This distrust deepened further with America’s support for the Shah’s regime, its backing of Saddam Hussein during the imposed war of the 1980s, the imposition of the longest and most comprehensive sanctions in modern history, and ultimately, unprovoked military aggression—twice, in the midst of negotiations—against Iran.

Yet all these pressures have failed to weaken Iran. On the contrary, the country has grown stronger in many areas: literacy rates have tripled—from roughly 30% before the Islamic Revolution to over 90% today; higher education has expanded dramatically; significant advances have been achieved in modern technology; healthcare services have improved; and infrastructure has developed at a pace and scale incomparable to the past. These are measurable, observable realities that stand independent of fabricated narratives.

At the same time, the destructive and inhumane impact of sanctions, war, and aggression on the lives of the resilient Iranian people must not be underestimated. The continuation of military aggression and recent bombings profoundly affect people’s lives, attitudes, and perspectives. This reflects a fundamental human truth: when war inflicts irreparable harm on lives, homes, cities, and futures, people will not remain indifferent toward those responsible.

This raises a fundamental question: Exactly which of the American people’s interests are truly being served by this war? Was there any objective threat from Iran to justify such behavior? Does the massacre of innocent children, the destruction of cancer-treatment pharmaceutical facilities, or boasting about bombing a country "back to the stone ages” serve any purpose other than further damaging the United States’ global standing?
Iran pursued negotiations, reached an agreement, and fulfilled all its commitments. The decision to withdraw from that agreement, escalate toward confrontation, and launch two acts of aggression in the midst of negotiations were destructive choices made by the U.S. government—choices that served the delusions of a foreign aggressor.

Attacking Iran’s vital infrastructure—including energy and industrial facilities—directly targets the Iranian people. Beyond constituting a war crime, such actions carry consequences that extend far beyond Iran’s borders. They generate instability, increase human and economic costs, and perpetuate cycles of tension, planting seeds of resentment that will endure for years. This is not a demonstration of strength; it is a sign of strategic bewilderment and an inability to achieve a sustainable solution.

Is it not also the case that America has entered this aggression as a proxy for Israel, influenced and manipulated by that regime? Is it not true that Israel, by manufacturing an Iranian threat, seeks to divert global attention away from its crimes toward the Palestinians? Is it not evident that Israel now aims to fight Iran to the last American soldier and the last American taxpayer dollar—shifting the burden of its delusions onto Iran, the region, and the United States itself in pursuit of illegitimate interests?

Is "America First” truly among the priorities of the U.S. government today?

I invite you to look beyond the machinery of misinformation—an integral part of this aggression—and instead speak with those who have visited Iran. Observe the many accomplished Iranian immigrants—educated in Iran—who now teach and conduct research at the world’s most prestigious universities, or contribute to the most advanced technology firms in the West. Do these realities align with the distortions you are being told about Iran and its people?

Today, the world stands at crossroads. Continuing along the path of confrontation is more costly and futile than ever before. The choice between confrontation and engagement is both real and consequential; its outcome will shape the future for generations to come. Throughout its millennia of proud history, Iran has outlasted many aggressors. All that remains of them are tarnished names in history, while Iran endures—resilient, dignified, and proud.

While I'm against the war.. I don't trust their government. Weren't they setting record numbers killing their own citizens? So while they're innocent in the sense they didn't start it.. they're not really innocent

Also it was reported numerous times that we attacked because Israel attacked Iran and Iran would have attacked us in retaliation either way. So we just attacked first

48 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

Letter from President of Iran to US people: https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/04/01/766191/pezeshkian-letter-American-people

No random CAPS? F'ing barbarians.

Well sheet

22 minutes ago, Mike030270 said:

This is the least surprising thing I’ve ever read

10 hours ago, vikas83 said:

Luckily, he can't actually withdraw from NATO without 2/3rd approval from the Senate. But he's done incalculable damage to our status as global leader.

The only thing that could bring it back would be another FDR level president foreign-policy wise during another World War.

That's basically it, unless someone invents a time machine to go back and get GHWB re-elected.

I guarantee you right now that Trump doesn't even know the Senate passed that bill in 2023 and Rubio is sweating bullets trying to figure out how to explain it to him without getting fired.

6 minutes ago, mayanh8 said:

I guarantee you right now that Trump doesn't even know the Senate passed that bill in 2023 and Rubio is sweating bullets trying to figure out how to explain it to him without getting fired.

The writing has been on the wall for years that Trump loathes NATO and pretty much all of Western Europe. One can only guess what his motives behind his disgust are, but it should be pretty obvious, he’d rather have Putin as an ally than the democratic governments in the EU.

2 minutes ago, Frankfurteagle89 said:

The writing has been on the wall for years that Trump loathes NATO and pretty much all of Western Europe. One can only guess what his motives behind his disgust are, but it should be pretty obvious, he’d rather have Putin as an ally than the democratic governments in the EU.

His speech last night was totally pathetic. We may look back and see it as the first totally clear indication of his final political power downfall. He had nothing which frankly was a surprise. Nothing new, no energy, no real push back other than just repeating what he's already written on Trump social about 20x already. As for NATO, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the top Repubs have started to push back offline and tell him to knock it down a notch.

13 minutes ago, Frankfurteagle89 said:

The writing has been on the wall for years that Trump loathes NATO and pretty much all of Western Europe. One can only guess what his motives behind his disgust are, but it should be pretty obvious, he’d rather have Putin as an ally than the democratic governments in the EU.

There's something going on with Trump and this administration beyond what the public can see. Like a black hole, you can't directly observe it, but you can see how it affects everything around it in the MAGA universe. Trump himself is a remarkably simple and stupid person. He holds grudges forever but for some unseen reason he can't bring himself to ever cross Putin, Gislaine/Epstein (when he was alive), and Netanyahu... even after all of them publicly made him look like a fool. He regularly gets dog walked by his counterparts but can't ever bring himself to say a bad word about them like he will with literally anyone else.

I do not believe the complete and total capitulation and prostration from Trump in reverence to these individuals is a result of some bro/dictator kinship. There's something going on below the surface that we can't see.

Well, that speech was pointless

6 minutes ago, Paul852 said:

Well, that speech was pointless

Yes, I found it strange but maybe he’s simply shot his wad and we are seeing the actual beginning of the end for him.

🤣

26 minutes ago, Tnt4philly said:

🤣

I like that one.

4 hours ago, mayanh8 said:

There's something going on with Trump and this administration beyond what the public can see. Like a black hole, you can't directly observe it, but you can see how it affects everything around it in the MAGA universe. Trump himself is a remarkably simple and stupid person. He holds grudges forever but for some unseen reason he can't bring himself to ever cross Putin, Gislaine/Epstein (when he was alive), and Netanyahu... even after all of them publicly made him look like a fool. He regularly gets dog walked by his counterparts but can't ever bring himself to say a bad word about them like he will with literally anyone else.

I do not believe the complete and total capitulation and prostration from Trump in reverence to these individuals is a result of some bro/dictator kinship. There's something going on below the surface that we can't see.

Because the first two hooked him up with underage Russian trim and the latter has the receipts.