A sad day in Minnesota.

Targeted assassinations. Law enforcement is said to have released that specific information to calm the civilian population, the idea being that since the victims were selected, the general population is safe from random attack.

By MarkSHoyle (Bolo) on Sunday, June 15, 2025 - 06:34 pm: Edit

Considering how much Russia relies on proceeds from Oil, what recourse could Ukraine use against Israel, because their attack on Iran is raising the price....
Could Ukraine sue financially or possibly request Iron Dome from Israel (Israel has said they would give any to Ukraine earlier)....

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, June 15, 2025 - 06:49 pm: Edit

They may be safe from deliberate attacks on politicians, but the next random citizen that accidentally encounters the desperate gunman trying to get something he needs to escape may very well find himself in serious danger.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Sunday, June 15, 2025 - 09:14 pm: Edit

Israel reports 13 dead and 300+ injured. All but a few are civilians.
Iran reports 128 dead and 900+ injured, all but a few are military, nuclear scientists, and leaders.
Iran says it will stop if Israel does.
Israel plans to keep bombing two weeks.
Israel says Iran plans to give nuclear bombs and missiles to its proxies.
Israel says Iran was behind two assassination attempts against Trump but gave no specifics.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 12:40 am: Edit

The Minnesota shooter has been arrested without force or any injury to anyone. Kudos to the entire state government and their law enforcement agencies and the federal agencies that helped.

By William Jockusch (Verybadcat) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 04:32 am: Edit

Mark,

Shahed engines are produced in Iran, not currently in Russia. These are the drones with which Russia bombards Ukraine every night. Israel has knocked out the relevant factory.

In addition, Israel supplied some Patriot systems to Ukraine.

Israel and Ukraine are likely to get along fine.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 08:26 am: Edit

I came here to say pretty much exactly that, William.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 10:08 am: Edit

An Israeli attack killed four top Iranian intelligence officials.

Iran continues to fire waves of missiles into Israel, breaking through the defense systems with saturation attacks.

Iran has about 2000 IRBMs. Israel has destroyed a third of the launchers. The US embassy branch in Tel Aviv was damaged by a near miss.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 03:45 pm: Edit

Iran is practically begging the US to force Israel into a ceasefire. Israel isn't having it. Israel wants the bunker killer bombs to destroy the underground facilities. The only Iranian civilian leaders targeted by Israel are intelligence and terrorist types, not political leadership. Israel has given the nuclear/missile complexes another round of bombs.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 04:48 pm: Edit

It appears that Israeli strikes have destroyed at least some of the "Persian Tomcats", the last operational F-14s anywhere.

By Garth L. Getgen (Sgt_G) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 07:05 pm: Edit

So, what is Maverick supposed fly out while escaping from the enemy air base??


Garth L. Getgen

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 08:54 pm: Edit

He may have to assemble one working aircraft from the debris left on the tarmac of the two Iranian F-14A tomcats destroyed by Israel.

Hope he can find enough glue…

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 09:23 pm: Edit

Netanyahu and Trump are telling the Iranians to evacuate Tehran immediately.

By Ryan Opel (Ryan) on Monday, June 16, 2025 - 09:50 pm: Edit

The chaos this will cause will be epic.

If it happens it will show the distrust the people have in the government.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 12:37 am: Edit

The Israelis destroyed the Iranian National TV building, which was a really big multi story thing. They are now broadcasting from an alternate which the Israelis are hunting.

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 02:36 am: Edit

If you don’t already know, there is a YouTube channel called suchomimus which is always showing satellite views of whatever just got bombed in what ever war happened that day. He’s done a lot of Russian air bases and is now doing Iran.

By MarkSHoyle (Bolo) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 09:28 am: Edit

Videos broadcast on media, show huge traffic jams going out of Tehran.....

Looks like whoever took them, made sure to do them at night, to get the max affect, showing the dark city, contrasted by the car lights....

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 01:32 pm: Edit

Republicans are circulating internal polls showing 72% of Americans support US planes bombing Iran. Any idea of the US Congress declaring war is a non-starter due to everything in US law that comes with declarations. However, Congress could authorize a US strike without a declaration. Senator Fetterman would vote with Republicans. The House could be a bit tricky.

Axios says Trump is actively considering making such a strike. He is meeting RIGHT NOW with the national security council to discuss such a strike. Trump just moments ago demanded “unconditional surrender “ from Iran. (Nations on a Mission From God TM cannot surrender.)

Only the US has the really really really big bombs (30,000 pounds) that can penetrate the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant, and Israel doesn’t have a combat aircraft that could carry those bombs. I guess that they might load it into a big cargo plane and roll it out the back cargo doors, maybe. But that size bomb fits in a B2 or B52.

Iran would never be deterred by a possible retaliation by Israel (which has 400 nukes) or the US.

If Iran used a nuclear weapon, Israel WILL hit back with ten. What would it hit given the policy of not being at war with Iranian civilians? Certainly military bases, missile factories, nuclear sites, maybe the Holy City of Qom. What would Israel do if it shot down a missile and found nuclear debris? Would it be theoretically possible for the US to lease a B2 to Iran?

By Steve Cole (Stevecole) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 01:35 pm: Edit

Israeli aircraft killed the new chief of staff of the Iranian military, who had held the job FOUR days.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 02:43 pm: Edit

Under the terms of the U.S. U.K. Lend lease program dating back to the early part of World War 2, aircraft would most certainly be allowed. Perhaps Israel might in return offer basing rights to the U.S. for 99 years in Yemen or Iran?

By MarkSHoyle (Bolo) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 03:12 pm: Edit

So what will come first....
Iran welcomes a Secular Government
or
It reverts back to being Persia.....

By Douglas Lampert (Dlampert) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 03:37 pm: Edit

Much as I'd like the Israelies to win this one, you don't get a country to surrender or weaken its government by dropping bombs on it. The only time that's worked was Japan in WWII, and there, we were visibly ready to invade, we had destroyed their fleet and airforce, we were starving them to death via blockade, the Soviets had just declared war on them, and we'd dropped 2 atomic bombs on them; and the Cabnet STILL deadlocked 3-3 on whether or not to surrender! And when the Emperor personally intervened to force a surrender, the army invaded the palace in an attempted coup against the sacred emperor to try to force the war to continue.

Basically, it takes a lot to get someone to fold with bombs from 30,000'. I don't expect Israel to manage it with Iran.

The Iranian government will not collapse while Israel is dropping bombs on them, they may collapse three weeks after Israel stops, but even that's not neccessarily the way to bet.

Editted to add: Wrecking their bomb program (again) is probably the main objective, and that's probably achievable, but the government won't collapse while the bombing is going on or while they can plausibly blame all their troubles on the bombing.

By Paul Howard (Raven) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 03:49 pm: Edit

Well, Politically things seem to be moving quikcly.

Mark raised one point - it reverts back to Persia.

Is it fair to say the Shah of Iran and the Iranian Secret Police, was not 'nice people'?

(Which might partly explain why the Iranian people revolted...).

So would Reza Pahlavi the 'Crown Prince of Iran' be welcomed back?

Sometimes evil leaders need to be replaced - but has it worked in Iraq, Libya or Syria (OK this one is still ongoing)?

Some places don't work without alot of aid or a Strong Arm holding it togethor.

By Jessica Orsini (Jessica_Orsini) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 05:23 pm: Edit

The current Iranian regime is notoriously brutal, as we all have seen regularly over the past 45 years.

Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was also notoriously brutal, and his twenty-five year reign was courtesy of a CIA-assisted coup back in '53. It's the #1 reason that today's Iran considers the U.S. to be anathema, and precious few want the Pahlavi dynasty to return to power.

The post-WWII parliamentary government was shaky, and alienated the U.K. by voting to nationalize the British-owned oil industry; this is what brought about the aforementioned coup.

From 1921 until Allied occupation in 1942, the Pahlavi dynasty was at the helm; while not quite as brutal as the final Shah proved to be, it was still no great shakes.

Before this, there was the Qajar dynasty. It's current pretender (Mohammad Hassan Mirza II) would also no doubt like to claim the throne. It spent its last hundred years or so as a British-Russian satrap, to the point where ministers couldn't be appointed without approval by those powers. Nobody's much more eager to have renewed Qajar rule than they are for a Pahlavi return.

By Jeff Wile (Jswile) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 - 05:25 pm: Edit

Going back to Russia/Ukraine for a moment…

There is a you tube video posted 4 days ago, of a pair of Russian Su-25 fighters attempting to intercept a Ukrainian aircraft near donesk four days ago. The video clip has already had over 413,000 views.

What makes it interesting, the wingman, using unguided rockets, managed to shoot down his own leader.

Not known if the pilot survived the destruction of the lead fighter.

Any one want to suggest what story the wingman should have used back at the base?

I’m going with “he attempted to defect, until I stopped him.”