Regarding the non-disclosure of the Epstein files.

We have just witnessed a naked display of power that is rare. I can’t think of a more naked display since the Kennedy assassination.

As was said, “the only aspect of the human condition that cannot be faked, is power.” This seems to me the most fundamental equation.

Typically, power disguises itself in lies and prettiness. Rarely do we see it exercised in full disregard for narrative. But here it came. This was naked power.

Strong enough to cause all the officials to yield to its narrative. But not strong enough to get any of them to sign the DOJ memo. And not strong enough to cause the memo to issue through DOJ procedures, with the full letterhead and protocols.

No, the memo was written by someone other than the officials. And they didn’t sign it, nor did they originate it. All they did was “validate” it.

So that’s the measure of the power. We should take its measure. This is better than I assumed. If I’m being coerced to the limit of my life, I can still withhold my signature?

I expected more from satanic forces. I’m still awed by this display, but I can’t help trying to measure it.

How do your measuring scales read?

Don’t know how real this is, but Syrian Girl says the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry suffered an explosion:

https://nitter.poast.org/Partisangirl/status/1938371490065617282#m

Apparently the strike did happen. Tehran Times reports the statement from Iran’s nuclear agency:

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/514759/AEOI-issues-statement-after-attack-on-Iran-nuclear-sites

Here’s an interesting thing from Mahmood’s latest report. He says that Iranian sources, including a diplomat, are saying that the initial Israeli attack was intended to take out about 400 leadership people in Iran, including Khamenei; that there were multiple explosions where officials were supposed to be but weren’t; and that thus, the entire decapitation plan for regime change failed at the outset.

I don’t know how strong the story is as fact, but I hadn’t heard this anywhere else yet, so maybe a thing to watch for. I will say that when I consider the size of Iran, 8 officers and 3 scientists killed actually did seem like a small result if the goal was a cascading collapse of the state. It would make sense if the target was much bigger – if all that was the goal. We will learn more over time, I imagine.

Here’s Mahmood, with timestamp set to where he mentions this thing (and spends only a few minutes on it):

I just watched this interview and I want to recommend it very strongly to anyone interested in this affair. Yes, Laith is everywhere at all times, and one cannot quite keep up with all the interviews and discussions – but THIS ONE really knocks the ball out of the park, in my view.

In such a short time and with such cogent words, Laith explains (1) all the context of how this came about, and explains (2) what Iran did to get through the initial attack and rebound. And then, (3) how Iran followed its preset plan to degrade the entire Israel attack and defense forces.

Yes, Iran was taken by surprise – but it was not unprepared (as Nima actually frames one of his questions). This is the key understanding of this conflict (and how history will record it).

Laith recounts the tale of Iranian action to date, and explicitly describes the operational tactics, and shows the dire situation of Israel. And then there’s the USA. The conversation deals with this, and ranges out to Pakistan, and to the free world.

Laith talks of the house slaves in the region, and the slave masters. And the curse of oil upon this region, and his wish to burn it all down, and return the Arabian Islamic world to its better life.

The West, of course, would suffer from this loss of its free lunch, but even here in the west, I found in myself that one can call this an acceptable trade.

Brilliant interview, one of his best.

@ AHH, I have been wanting to cite and agree with your insight from yesterday about Iran’s strategy.

You said that it becomes apparent now that the reason Iran held off so long with its True Promise 3 is that it had changed its goal from one of giving a demonstration, to one of actually solving the problem for good. I haven’t seen this observed anywhere else, and I wanted to offer thanks and praise for your surmise.

And since then, we see continued messaging and resolve from Iran – explicitly – that it will strive to end the entity and to liberate Palestine. What a noble goal, what a clear-sighted strategy.

~~

Riffing on this, we could further surmise that, after the second promise was kept, Iran had learned all it needed to know about Israel allied defense, and didn’t need any more probing by fire.

What it didn’t know, and couldn’t know, was the measure of enemy emplacement within the country. The only way to find this out was to go into a war situation, and have Israel activate its assets. No other campaign could have revealed this.

This one slice of logic, one surmises, would simply compel even more toward going into full-on war mode: clean out the moles just as Russia has in war mode. Iran gave up renewing its always-tested “deterrence” in order to prepare to end the fight.

Certainly, it has long gamed the US presence in the field and the attempted nuclear attack, perhaps even on Tehran. Certainly, Iran knew all these things as it reached its conclusions after TP-2.

But Gaza starves. And Iran can watch, or Iran can act. And so, although its all surmise, we think we see now the decisions made. And the scale of that choice.

I worried about that Evacuate Tehran thing, but then I remembered my own advice never to listen to any word from him.

As to nukes, I’ve been thinking that Israel wants the US in the war because they want the US to nuke Iran, and they don’t want to be blamed for using their well known Samson Option. Cowards that they are, they want the US to do the deed, and Israel-bitch that the US is, it probably would do it.

And one could surmise that Pakistan and North Korea are jumping in so quickly, not so much to aid Iran directly, as to provide a nuclear counterweight to anything “unthinkable” the Pentagon might decide to think. A necessary move of global checkmate – for which I am enormously grateful.

Starting to like like a serious staging for US entry into war:

DD Geopolitics @DD_Geopolitics – 2h (xcancel link)

🇺🇸✈️ RCH804 — Another U.S. Air Force C-17A Globemaster III (07-7169) out of Ramstein just completed a direct run to the Red Sea corridor near Israel/Egypt, then looped back without landing. No recorded stop. Flight path consistent with:

• Aerial cargo drop

• Rapid asset repositioning

• Support for forward deployment