Americans have an issue with understanding the Middle East and Islam. It’s natural to expect everyone to behave rationally and to think the same way you do. But that is not the case in the Islamic world. I would have expected some people in government to recognize this by now. President Trump can repeat that … More Here We Go, Again
I was glad to see that the Iran-US talks resumed. I do not expect anything of substance to come from them, but talking is better than shooting. When all this started, several months ago, I noted that aerial bombing, by itself, never won a war. That is still true. In the current case, it allowed … More Talking Again 21 Jun
I have postponed writing this for several days now while my thoughts varied from very cautious optimism to fearful pessimism. The media (on all sides) appears to me to be clueless. Tey select items to support their own point of view and omit others. My own sources remain openly published items, so they obviously are … More Cease Fire thoughts 19 Apr
Jews await the coming of the Messiah. Christians are waiting for him to come again. But in Islam, he is known as the Mahdi, and he has already come at least once. There are few people in the West who remember the story of the most famous Mahdi. (more than 35 people have claimed to … More The Mahdi – 5 Apr 2026
The Houthis in Yemen made what may have been simply a symbolic gesture when launched 1 missile at Israel. They are also threatening to close the straits at the Southern end of the Red Sea, but the fact that they only fired one missile may indicate that they are not serious about active participation. They … More World events, a personal view – 28 Mar 2026
I was taken by surprise when us president Trump reported that there were going to be negotiations to end the current war. I’m certainly not opposed to the ides, but just how it’s going to play out does include a little bit of worry. I should also add that I was NOT surprised when Iran … More Iran War – 24 Mar
Continuation, The Israeli Home Front Command is beginning to relax some of the rules, possibly an indicator that Iran is less of a threat. This morning prayers were upstairs instead of the more protected lower level, and no limitations on number of participants. Schools are being reopened, not that it means much, because the children … More Iran War 20 Mar
I have a lot of accumulated comments so this may be long. When you choose war as a means of achieving some political objective, you cannot always be sure things will go as planned. This applies to all sides in the current war in Iran. The propaganda and fake news departments on both sides are … More Iran War – 19 Mar 2026
Indian TV pointed out that much media coverage of the current war in Iran is being driven by an effort to make more media viewer points and gain more economically as a result. This appears to be especially true for American coverage. Here are a few items that US media may have overlooked or under-reported … More What I am seeing and hearing – 8 Mar 2026
The latest round of talks between the USA and Iran just ended. It was without doubt, a victory for Iran. The Iranian plan appears to be to drag out negotiations for as long as possible, an to wait for the US to lose interest in attacking them. They make little concessions here and there and … More When will the war start? 27 Feb 2026
Wetherhorn 