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Alex retweeted
The World Cup is not FIFA’s to sell. “Outside investors" should be nowhere near the greatest sporting prize on earth. "Outside investors" should be nowhere near a governing body, even a subsidiary of FIFA. The optics are terrible. The threat of interference is obvious. There was enough political interference in the sport at the World Cup over suspending Folarin Balogun’s suspension. Damaged the integrity of the game. There was commercial interference with the sponsored hydration breaks. Damaged the flow of the game.
FIFA insists that the billions raised by “outside investors” will help smaller national associations in the story first reported by the Financial Times and Times. That, coincidentally, should guarantee Gianni Infantino votes to continue as FIFA president next March.
FIFA also insists that these outside investors’ involvement in “FIFA Forward Enterprise” will not interfere with the “democratic” process of FIFA. But who are these private investors? What are their motives? Ego? Influence? Alarm bells should be ringing throughout world football about this deeply dangerous development.
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Alex retweeted
Some random Saturday morning observations on the U.S.-Iran War:
(1) Trump is stuck and doesn’t know what to do. He could escalate further but this would bring more material, human, economic and political costs. He can walk away from the war but that would vindicate Iran’s war-time strategy and amount to de-facto U.S. acceptance of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz. He can continue doing what’s he doing, bombing everyday in a failed attempt to coerce Iran into re-opening the strait. Or he can resume negotiations, which will be long, frustrating, drawn-out and inevitably require some tough U.S. concessions. Pick your poison.
(2) From the U.S. perspective, the war is no longer about Iran’s nuclear program—it’s about opening up a waterway that was already open before the war. So Trump is now effectively fighting to get back to where he was before the war started. If this isn’t a sign of complete and total failure at the strategic level, then I don’t know what is.
(3) The U.S. has the advantage in military and latent power, but Iran has the advantage in geography and resolve. By “resolve,” I mean the incentive to continue fighting. Ultimately this comes down to the stakes. For the U.S., the war is an overseas mission of choice; for Iran, it’s existential.
(4) If there’s a silver-lining in any of this, it’s that the war—and America’s recklessness—forces Washington’s traditional partners in the Middle East to diversify their security relationships and do more for themselves (granted, we’re already seeing some of this play out, although how real the shift is remains to be seen). This would not only be better for the region but also give the U.S. the opportunity to stop playing the policeman in the region, which it’s not great at doing anyway.
(5) Nobody is going to be satisfied with how this war ends. There are no clean, clear victories here. Pre-war assumptions have been dead wrong. And the people who made them so brazenly and confidently shouldn’t be treated as serious people anymore (unless they repent).
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If China was already helping Iran in this war (albeit secretly and methodically), just imagine what it might do after Trump addresses the nation tonight to discuss how it allegedly took part in election fraud that cost him the presidency in 2020.
Uncertain times lie ahead...
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Alex retweeted
cuando dijeron que le iban a subir la dificultad a minecraft extremo 3 no pensé que iban a agregar efectos especiales
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In Clausewitzian terms, Iran WON.
It converted military endurance into political advantage. The egime survived, economic pressure eased, strategic capabilities remained negotiable rather than surrendered, and the war ended in negotiation, not capitulation.
Trump hit the wall.
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Alex retweeted
I see these photo-ops and all I hear is:
“Look, we can’t really focus on dealing with Cuba until the Iran war is over. Until then, innocent Cubans will continue suffering under both our sanctions and their regime. If things blow up in the meantime, we’ll revisit the issue. For now, brace yourselves for a long, miserable summer.
Now let’s do some reps, bros.”
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth spoke to servicemembers at the U.S. base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba today. Secretary Hegseth said that “what happens with the future of Cuba is in the hands of the president of the United States and the leadership of Cuba,” adding that regardless of how ongoing U.S.-Cuba tensions play out, “the Department of War is going to be prepared and postured for any possible contingency.”
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Worth reading...
“Such a deal, if it goes through, could potentially bring the saga of Cuba’s mineral riches full circle by returning nickel and cobalt mines to U.S. ownership at a time when they have acquired a new strategic importance” theatlantic.com/national-sec…
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