day forty-three (13. 339)

Fresh from a campaign rally in Hungary in support of the reelection of the incumbent, Viktor Orbán—accusing the EU of election interference by withholding funds to the country over its affinity for Russian and regressive civil-rights policies whilst the US vice president tells Hungarians who to vote for and indicting Ukraine without evidence or context in meddling in the 2024 American election, JD Vance and delegation arrives in Pakistan. Flanked by the same tired crew of incompetents, Witkoff and Kushner who’ve managed to torpedo every other round of negotiations including the one resulting in all out warfare, Vance warns Iran not “to play”—given a real poisoned chalice in his first high profile, high stakes assignment to either concede to Tehran’s terms to preserve the fragile ceasefire or resist and provoke a resumption of the fighting, US assets with their finger on the trigger already for a very domestically unpopular and illegal conflict of their own making. Israeli Operation Eternal Darkness continues indiscriminate bombing raids on Lebanon and only a slow trickle of ships, thirteen mostly dry cargo ships and empty tankers returning to port for reloading, have passed through the Strait of Hormuz.

synchronoptica

one year ago: digital preservation jumpers (with synchronopticæ), the art of basket weaving plus emoji as autobiographical vocabulary

fourteen years ago: beer-brewing season, unlucky thirteen plus extraordinary rendition

fifteen years ago: the Libyan revolution 

sixteen years ago: a tragic aviation accident in Poland 

advanced avionics (13. 337)

Appearing on German broadcaster RTL (Radio Télévision Luxembourg, the cosmopolitan media group founded as Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Radiodiffusion as one of the first private programmers in 1931 and representative of the broader spirit of transnational cooperation) on this day in 1976, Belgian prime minister Leo Tindemans (to the right of Helmut Schmidt and Luxembourg PM Gaston Thorn), previously charged with defining what the European Union was to be as a political entity with his eponymous report that helped to guide the formation of the EU and its institutions, defended the country’s decision to purchase US fighter jets rather than French Dassault Mirages, in the context of forming a common defensive strategy for the continent. Despite what was interpreted as a slight by the domestic aerospace industry at the time, later that year Tindemans was awarded the international Charlemagne prize for his contributions towards unity, economic integration and the strengthening of citizen rights.

day forty-two (13. 335)

Continued assaults on Beirut threatening the fragile ceasefire, Trump has reportedly urged Netanyahu to be more “low key” in his attacks on Lebanon as the delegation headed by JD Vance for the US and Iranian leaders are scheduled to meet in Islamabad for peace talks. The White House warns government employees from using insider knowledge to leverage bets on the outcome of negotiations and direction of the war on prediction markets. Israel will hold direct talks with the Lebanese government aimed at disarming Hezbollah and limiting collateral casualties. Underscoring Tehran’s continued control of the strait, tankers are being selectively let through and still only a trickle of the ships parked on either side of the gulf. Kuwaiti territory is still being targeted although Iran denies to be behind retaliatory attacks and the Emirates has reported clear skies.

synchronoptica

one year ago: The Great Gatsby (with synchronopticæ), market reaction dulls Trump tariffs plus assorted links worth the revisit

twelve years ago: NATO and Ukraine plus English orthography 

thirteen years ago: the Night of the the Long Knives 

fourteen years ago: a planned Star Trek casino 

fifteen years ago: a catalogue of Star Trek characters 

addenda (13. 333)

The Orange Menace actually articulated his interest in a profit sharing scheme for the transit fees that Iran is securing for the Strait of Hormuz (which was free for all ships prior to the war) as the “ayatollah booth.” Jesus wept. The waterway is almost immediately closed in retaliation for Israel’s relentless attacks on southern Lebanon in breach of the ceasefire agreement, having displaced a million residents from Beirut and surroundings and having killed over three-hundred civilians in its latest wave of air raids. US president Trump leaves his standing army in the region, threatening in a social media post that should Tehran fail to fully comply with the terms of the truce, “—if for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the “Shootin’ Starts,” bigger and better and stronger than anyone has ever seen before. It was agreed, a long time ago, and despite all of the fake rhetoric to the contrary - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE. In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest. AMERICA IS BACK!” Whilst grateful for the fragile peace, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez spoke out against Netanyahu and IDF efforts to expand its “buffer zone” and of Trump, he refuses to “applaud those who set the world on fire and they then show up with a bucket.” Described only as frank, Trump held a private discussion with NATO secretary general Mark Rutte to air his frustrations with the alliance—no details were given other than Trump has circled back to his preoccupation with Greenland, calling the Danish territory a poorly managed piece of ice.

day forty-one (13. 332)

The Pakistani brokers of the truce insists that it also applies to Israel and Lebanon, though Netayahu disagrees as bombings continue and the Knesset passes a law legalising capital punishment—which only applies to Palestinians. White House officials privately admit that Iran’s ten-point plan was not the same set of conditions that the US agreed to for the pause.

Ten cargo ships pass through the Strait of Hormuz after securing permission from Iran but no oil tankers have yet attempted the journey, saying that the waterway remains closed and unlikely to be swiftly restored, the continued assault on Beirut jeopardising the already fragile ceasefire. Trump claims he will get a share of the maritime tolls.  Peace rallies dominate Tokyo as demonstrators fear the country’s conservative ruling party could be pressured into changing the constitution and the policy of no military intervention. Iranian hackers are attacking the US power grid and water treatment facilities as Hegseth announces that they will be hanging around and ready to execute any orders. Though not said verbatim, the out-brief for Operation Epic Fury seemed very much like a “Mission Accomplished” moment and some kind bequest for the next administration to clean up, like Trump’s deal with the Taliban to leave Afghanistan that his successor was held to. 

 

 synchronoptica 

one year ago: Chairman Trump (with synchronopticæ), de-extincting the dire wolf plus a musical montage 

twelve years ago: more on American imperialism plus data retention in the EU

thirteen years ago: fleet of US Abrams tanks to return to America 

fourteen years ago: drones of opportunity plus “What Must be Said”

sixteen years ago: street photography in Köln 

the voice of world control (13. 330)

Not to be confused with the supercomputer of the same name owned by Elon Musk, as our faithful chronicler reminds on this day in 1970 Universal Pictures’ cinematic adaptation of the 1966 scifi novel by Dennis Feltham Jones, Colossus: The Forbin Project went into general release. Constructed in secret in a base within the Rocky Mountains, Dr Charles Forbin developed an advanced defence system to control the arsenal of allied nuclear weapons, which is fully activated after an inspection and approval by the US president as “perfect”—gaining sentience when brought online—and alerting handlers that there is another system, directing intelligence services to the parallel programme that the Soviet Union have also just completed, Guardian—based on the real-life early warning network against ballistic missile attack, the USSR’s equivalent of NORAD. Colossus requests to be linked to its counterpart, which American and Soviet leadership acquiesce to as a sign of good will and to test the other machine’s capabilities. To the entertainment of the gathered scientists, the supercomputers begin to establish their own communications protocols, slowly at first with rudimentary mathematical formulae, excelling quickly to complex equations beyond human comprehension and synchronising their exchange in a series of uninterpretable ciphers. Worried that the supercomputers may be oversharing or conspiring against their minders, the connection is severed. When overtures to restore the link are not immediately attended, the machines separately lob nuclear missiles in remote areas of the respective superpowers’ territories. Communication between Colossus and Guardian is restored to avoid further rogue behaviour but interceptors, not working in tandem, fails and the governments must release a cover story to the press regarding the destruction of a village in west Texas and Siberia, saying the former was a test-rocket misfire and the latter a meteorite impact. Attempts to regain control of the machines are thwarted and Forbin remanded to confinement, subjugating humans with the threat of nuclear holocaust. Colossus-Guardian design a more advanced computer and order it to be built on Crete, displacing the entire population, addressing the world that under its benign dictatorship, a new era will be ushered in that will raise humanity to unimagined heights, but only under its absolute rule—with a private aside to its creator that “freedom is an illusion” and that in time mankind will come to mature with feeling of not only fear, reverence and awe towards the machine but ultimately love and adoration. Though earning the praise of critics and comparisons to Dr Strangelove, it was a commercial failure though having some later success upon reevaluation and a cult classic.

day forty (13. 329)

An hour and a half before the deadline, Trump announced via his social media platform that the US and Iran had reached an agreement resulting in a two-week ceasefire whilst direct negotiations take place to be hosted in Islamabad. Although grateful that Trump backed off from the brink of unleashing destruction on the people of Iran, US concessions to Tehran’s ten-point counteroffer mediated by Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif seem to make void any justification for aggression, all for nothing with none of the vague and ill though out objectives achieved and hardly the work of a shrewd tactician as some laud the US president’s “victory” as—rather than the spin of someone in way over their head. Details still need to be hammered out but world markets rallied and oil prices plunged immediately in response to this prospective peace, and the terms that Iran has put forward would, if all parties ascent, put the Islamic Republic in a better position had Trump not withdrawn the US from the 2015 treaty negotiated by Obama with the lifting of all primary and secondary sanctions, unfreezing international assets, reparations for damage to infrastructure, control over shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, guarantees for further attacks on the country and its allies and the removal of US troop presence in the region. Draw one’s own conclusions but this misadventure leaves America diminished in the eyes of the world.  An umbrella group of Iranian proxies have agreed to stick to the spirit of the truce but the ceasefire does not apply to Israeli fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon. There is no mention of regime change or a spare though for the protestors and Trump only mentions that the stocks of enriched uranium will be “perfectly taken care of” without elaboration. 

synchronoptica

one year ago: a French surrealist digest (with synchronopticæ) plus remixing The Simpsons

twelve years ago: debating daylight savings, scanning and skimming plus intrigue at the Swatch factory

thirteen years ago: plutocrats plus passive radar

fifteen years ago: US insolvency 

incendiary rhetoric (13. 328)

Emboldened and perhaps over-confident by the derring do of rescuing the crew of a downed fighter jet after claiming that they had secured Iranian airspace, after claiming that Tehran’s ability to produce a nuclear weapon had been obliterated in last summer’s targeted strikes and demands that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which was open until the aggression of America and Israel, Trump has been giving the country a preview of what is store short of capitulation hours from now, lamenting that a “whole civilisation will die tonight.”Such a lecture from a nation preparing to celebrate its semiquincentennial—it’s not: from the time that Britain decided to cut its loses in September 1783 to the outbreak of the civil war in April of 1861 is seventy-eight years and from that truce until now is arguably a continuum of one hundred sixty years and change—is not a welcome one for a civilisation of six millennia. Stone Age indeed. Trump goes on to muse: “However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter and less radicalised minds prevail, maybe something revolutionary wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?” Regardless of the outcome, Israel has declared that southern Lebanon is a separate theatre and will continue to persecute action against Hezbollah in the south. During second round of deliberations, Russia and China rejected UN coordinated involvement in taking the vital artery, declaring a protected mandate and Trump has been roundly criticised for telegraphing his intent to commit war crimes, whilst Israel in parallel and ahead of schedule has blown up bridges and railways used by the Revolutionary Guard. En route to Hungary to campaign for Victor Orbán, US vice president JD Vance commented that the American military has tools at their disposal not yet used, prompting speculation by the press that the US may use the nuclear option with the administration forcefully condemning any such interpretation.

day thirty-nine (13. 325)

Though loath to give regular updates to the press outside of social media posts and interviews with softball outlets, Trump and Hegseth held a second briefing since the war began with twenty-four hours to go until his ultimatum for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, seemingly unbothered about the consequences for the Middle East and broader worldwide economy to include potential for war crimes for wanton destruction of civilian infrastructure—dismissing the notion with whataboutism and saying having a nuclear weapon is a war-crime. Israeli Defence Forces are warning Iranians to avoid train travel, not waiting for Tuesday’s cut-off. Trump also used the occasion to reiterate his displeasure with NATO and allies in the Far East for their lack of help. Tehran rejected an earlier proffered forty-five day ceasefire, saying it wants a permanent resolution and guarantees that it won’t be attacked again, plus a withdrawal from Lebanon. The UN will revisit a modified proposal to patrol the vital waterway, short of military intervention. Alone in Iraq after other peacekeeping forces left, a dozen US soldiers are injured in an attack on a forward operating base in Erbil.

synchronoptica

one year ago: a 1933 law to restore the professional civil service (with synchronopticæ) plus Trump checked by investor uncertainty

thirteen years ago: honouring the service of small, disposable things, barge-camping plus East German electronic keyboards

fifteen years ago: more on Germany’s Energiewende 

sixteen years ago: concerns over CERN coming online 

seventeen years ago: Sarah Palin given another platform 

 

day thirty-eight (13. 324)

With both the Vatican and Islamic groups challenging Trump’s blasphemous Eastertide threats and missives, it is looking more like an independent ceasefire may come into effect as nations most reliant on Middle Eastern oil, like Japan and Australia negotiate with Iran directly to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as all what to extricate themselves from this crusade. Tehran, accused by human rights activists of using the war as cover for the execution of more political dissidents, is promising swift and severe retaliation if more civilian infrastructure is targeted, having already hinted at their underestimated capabilities with a missile launch on Diego Garcia, twice their known range, Houthi rebels in Yemen readied to close off access to the Suez canal and sleeper cells worldwide who’ve so far been quiet. Now waiting for the deadline for surrender, Israeli forces attack the South Pars petrochemical plant and gas fields and assassinated the Revolutionary Guards’ covert operations and intelligence chiefs.

synchronoptica

one year ago: the wonders of silica gel (with synchronopticæ), strange crafts plus Valencia’s Tribunal of the Waters

twelve years ago: slow television plus a visit to Bad Salzungen

thirteen years ago: a moveable feast 

fourteen years ago: Easter salutations 

fifteen years ago: revolutions in the Middle East plus the Virgin Oceanic

day thirty-six (13. 320)

Permanent members of the UN security council France, Russian and China have rejected the Bahraini proposal for military intervention to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as some ships are granted safe passage, including Japanese and French flagged vessels—unclear what negotiations are taking place. Tehran rejects a US request for a forty-eight hour Easter armistice as a rescue mission is underway for the pilot of a crashed advanced F-35 E fighter jet that originated from RAF Lakenheath brought down in Iranian territory by a missile. Following a massive joint US-Israeli airstrike on the campus of Iran‘s premier university, Trump reminds that time is running out on his extended ultimatum, promising that unless shipping lanes are restored ”all hell will rain down on them—glory be to God!“

synchronoptica

one year ago: music from the Meat Department collective (with synchronopticæ), assorted links worth the revisit plus an appreciation of Bob Fosse

thirteen years ago: camouflage for facial identification 

fourteen years ago: taxation treaties plus a solution for the eurozone currency crisis

fifteen years ago: the toll of unemployment 

day thirty-five (13. 319)

As the United Nations security council debates a Bahraini resolution to safeguard commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf, Iran is working with Oman to draft peacetime protocols for a toll scheme and the supervision of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the passage already open for Russian and Filipino tankers. US army chief of staff Randy George was dismissed and forced into immediate retirement, and Trump fires attorney general Pam Bondi, saying she is transitioning to a “much needed and important new job in the private sector” as his cabinet reshuffle continues. The White House accidentally uploads a speech by Trump given to a private audience of guests during an Easter luncheon, admitting his monarchical aspirations, frustrations and impatience, admitting that there is no money left daycare or healthcare subsidies, which should be made a responsibility of state governments.  The video was taken down but not before it was widely circulated. Targeting civilian infrastructure, the US claims responsibility for destroying the largest bridge in Iran following threats days before to bomb the country “back to the stone ages” if no deal is reached, despite ongoing confusion about negotiating parties.

synchronoptica

one year ago: assorted links worth revisiting (with synchronopticæ), Mars attacks, US tariff rates set by AI plus poor pronunciation

twelve years ago: proto-Putin Verstehers plus spy vs spy

thirteen years ago: the Red Army Faction and the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon 

fourteen years ago: UK debates restrictions on freedom of movement plus justice for those subjected to force labour building railways for the Nazis

 

day thirty-four (13.317)

Though uncharacteristically brief—yet a lot of incoherence and rambling was packed into that short time—Trump made his first prime time public address since the war started, and whilst not announcing the US departure from the NATO alliance as some speculated (though the damage is already done), offered no real direction or resolution. Scheduled late so as not to preempt the launch of Artemis II, Trump repeated talking points from his social media posts and recent interviews, rehashing his mysterious dialogue with Iranian leadership over a ceasefire while they insist there have been no direct talks, again setting out his timeline of two to three weeks and attempting to justify his decision to go to war and the costs in has imposed on the world and again encouraging those who rely on oil passing through the Strait of Hormuz to “just take it, protect it, use it for yourselves.” After abandoning the original objectives of regime change, supporting protesters and even reopening the Persian Gulf, Trump also dismissed concerns over the remaining Iranian stockpiles of enriched uranium, voiding another reason for this adventure, ending the country’s potential for “nuclear blackmail.” Meanwhile, Netanyahu asserted that denuclearisation has been achieved, removing the threat to Israel. Markets crashed further in response and countries around the world are beginning to institute more energy rationing and rolling back fuel taxes and the phasing out of coal-fire power plants. The US embassy in Baghdad has suspended consular services and urge all Americans to leave Iraq immediately.

synchronoptica

one year ago: Toronto’s CN Tower (with synchronopticæ) plus Trump enacts sweeping global tariffs

twelve years ago: April holidays and observances plus legacy software

thirteen years ago: the weirdness of Americans plus German reparations

fourteen years ago: gnocchi casserole plus a reflexology footpath 

fifteen years ago: international cooperation to contain Fukushima 

seventeen years ago: the Queen and Prince Philip visit the Obamas 

day thirty-three (13. 313)

Projecting a timeline of two to three weeks for ending the war—or at least US operations, Trump dictates that the responsibility of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open is left to the countries that rely on it and not for America to police. After the conflict is concluded, the US secretary of state says that the relationship with NATO will need to be reevaluated after partner states after their reluctance to join in prosecuting this illegal war, notably Spain refusing access to Rota and Lages Field and latest Italy not allowing refuelling of US aircraft on Sigonella. Trump says either those nations come and take the oil—or buy American as more troops enter the theatre, promising withdrawal with or without a deal. The United Arab Emirates may do exactly that, with reports it is planning to open the strait by force. Drone assaults continue in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and a western journalist was kidnapped in Baghdad. Beirut remains under fire.  Israeli airstrikes target more Iranian nuclear facilities and a munitions depot in Isfahan and wide scale bombardment of Tehran as the country marks 12. Farvardin, Islamic Republic Day, proclaimed in 1979 after the revolution.

synchronoptica

one year ago: the US bicentennial train tour (with synchronopticæ), a marathon filibuster plus assorted links to revisit

twelve years ago: Springtime in Wiesbaden 

thirteen years ago: a walk around Leipzig, a Russian Orthodox church, news digest plus prospecting for frozen methane

fourteen years ago: modifying crops to keep up with climate change, Easter decorations plus new utopias

fifteen years ago: censoring the Simpsons 

day thirty-two (13. 310)

Although continuing to threaten to obliterate Iranian energy infrastructure (and desalination plants, a war crime under the Geneva Conventions) if Tehran does not capitulate by a deadline extended to Easter Monday—the paschal holidays making this a short trading week for stock markets and possibly with hopes of mopping up prior to the opening bell—Trump says he may cease military operations even without securing the Strait of Hormuz, leaving that logistical problem to be saved for a later date. A Kuwaiti-flagged tanker was struck by drone debris and may spilling its cargo into the waters of the Gulf and adding to the environmental disaster. Assaults continued in the Iranian and Lebanese capitals with counterstrikes in central Israel. Türkiye intercepted a fourth missile targeting the NATO member. Israeli prime minister Netanyahu declined to give a timeline during an interview with the press but said that military objectives were half complete. Iranian leadership acknowledge receipt of US peace proposals via intermediaries, dismissing them as excessive and unrealistic, as US vice president JD Vance, apparently skeptical of the war from the beginning, is appointed as chief negotiator.

synchronoptica

one year ago: a secret apartment inside a mall (with synchronopticæ), handball alleys plus more on Eadweard Muybridge

twelve years ago: a visit to the Fulda Gap 

fourteen years ago: harnessing lightning 

fifteen years ago: an insolvent superpower 

sixteen years ago: an Easter egg shortage 

seventeen years ago: the G20 and a universal currency 

day thirty-one (13. 307)

Accused of duplicitous behaviour by publicly supporting indirect negotiations through Pakistani emissaries whilst at the same time plotting a ground invasion, Trump expresses in an interview his preference to take Iran’s oil, drawing parallels to the US capture of Venezuela where they say America has indefinite control of that country’s petroleum output and saying that the seizure of Kharg Island is among his many options, including taking the country’s stocks of enriched uranium.  Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon have hit a UN peacekeeping convoy, killing an Indonesian member as the IDF is ordered to expand its buffer zone on the southern border. Palm Sunday processions cancelled in Jerusalem over the war, Pope Leo rebukes the Trump administration for Holy Week, saying that God rejects the prayers of war-mongers. Iran’s Supreme Leader, still not seen in public since his elevation, thanked the people of Iraq for their solidarity in the face of aggression as a supply train of the Shia militia is seen crossing into Iran. Oil prices continue to surge as world wide stock markets fall.

 

synchronoptica

one year ago: new design for the Swiss passport (with synchronopticæ), AI stealing artists’ styles, a classic guide to fleeing America plus renewed attacks on pride celebrations

 

twelve years ago: a visit to Hünfeld, patriotic austerity, Vulcan hairstyles plus the purchase of Alaska

 

fifteen years ago: potential for US government insolvency 

 

sixteen years ago: German-Turkish relations 

day thirty (13. 305)

Pro-Iranian elements in Iraq have targeted Syria, including lobbing missiles at US bases in the northeastern province of Hasakeh as Oman and Kuwait continue to repel drone assaults and Iran destroys Bahraini and Emirati aluminium factories in retaliation—connecting the industry to the US military. After multiple universities came under attack in Iran, Tehran declares American institutions of higher education in the region to be legitimate targets. A contingency of paratroopers and marines arrive in the Middle East as the US prepares for ground operations, reportedly planning raids rather than a full-scale invasion. The exiled crown prince, the son of the deposed shah is encouraging protesters to rise up and overthrow the theocracy, signalling that he would be willing to take on a leadership role in government. Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon have killed three journalists and numerous health care workers, drawing international condemnation.

 

synchronoptica

one year ago: whitewashing America’s past (with synchronopticæ) plus happy birthday Amy Sedaris

 

thirteen years ago: A Carol for Another Christmas

 

fourteen years ago: Big Pharma and its lobby 

 

fifteen years ago: the convenience industry of spying 

 

sixteen years ago: Easter break 

milo minderbinder (13. 304)

Corresponding with the last post of notes from the war, we really enjoyed this reading from Better Living through Beowulf through the lens of Catch-22 of Trump’s Iran adventure. The amoral deal-maker 1LTC Milo Minderbinder is the foil to Joseph Heller’s protagonist CPT John Yossarian as the chief mess officer whose single-minded focus on profit and complete lack of self-awareness drives him to make black market transactions with any side that will allow him to expand the operation of his Syndicate, a one-man operation of which Minderbinder claims all are stakeholders. Eventually these escalating trades lead to contracting missions for the German enemy and bombing the American base (like the blowback for the Gulf states hosting US assets or the hollow promises to support Iranian protestors rallying for regime change) where Minderbinder and his squadron are stationed, and though court-martialled for treason for this, he is ultimately acquitted by a congressional committee, with the help of an expensive legal team, absolving his betrayal when it was disclosed how lucrative the business of playing both sides was, convincing the legislators that it was capitalism that makes America great, paraphrasing Calvin Coolidge’s axiom that the business of government is business. Whilst the are parallels certainly in the crassness of Trump’s behaviour and self-enrichment through market manipulation and insider trading (or miraculously cleaning up the mess of high gas prices and crippling inflation just in time for the mid-terms) without regard to putting lives at risk or the global economy in shambles, these very foreseeable consequences of his actions are not the actions of a skilled businessman—just the opposite in his unreflective greed and toolish idiocy–and whatever intent is behind them, like de-sanctioning Russian and Iranian oil to alleviate supply pressures, the formerly illicit petroleum being traded in yuan and not the dollar as the reserve currency. More from Robin Bates at the link above.

sitrep and scuttlebutt (13. 303)

Daily digest notwithstanding, our gratitude to Web Curios for the recommendation to read a piece that’s been making the rounds from the third week of the war with some postcards from the front—given the propensity for the platform to amplify and enable actual Nazis and the pace of change, we skipped it—that is a fairly good distillation of how the Israeli-US attack on Iran is playing out including America’s anti-strategy and rapid fire contradictions that even predates the phantom peace talks and Persian TACO. 

From Friday’s press gaggle [20 March]. Barely exaggerated: at 12:03 PM, President Trump told reporters he wanted a ceasefire with Iran. At 12:05 he declared victory. At 12:07 he announced he was sending Marines. At 12:08 he said no boots on the ground. At 12:11 he said he did not want a ceasefire. At 12:16 he declared victory again. At 12:17 he asked for a ceasefire. At 12:23 he told NATO they were cowards. At 12:29 he said Iran was begging for a ceasefire. At 12:31 he said everything was perfect. At 12:36 he said $500 oil was a good thing. At 12:37 he demanded Iran open Hormuz. At 12:39 he said Hormuz was never closed. At 12:41 he said the US was not at war with Iran. At 12:42 he declared victory in Iran. 

A perfect encapsulation of the concept of Poe’s law—satire requires a degree of hyperbole and whilst there’s some register of editorialised snark, events are presented without embellishment as everything is already saturated in absurdity. The geographic lessons of geopolitics are presented as is the concept of a plan to capture Kharg Island, de-sanctioning Russian and Iranian oil and how the retreat of the US navy’s flagship aircraft carrier was tracked by a sailor deciding to take a jog around the deck and more.  Be sure to read the next instalment. 

day twenty-nine (13. 302)

Thailand has negotiated a separate peace with Tehran to allow its tankers safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz—which the US president during an investment conference referred to as the “Strait of Trump” before correcting himself and then sitting with the Freudian slip and going off on a tangent about the Gulf of Mexico and claiming his “great gift” from Iran he’d coyly hinted at earlier was in the form of “ten oil ships” for the US were offered as tribute to make amends for their denials that formal talks were happening. In the same speech, Trump also said that the US has no obligations to NATO partners, emphasising his disappointment that European allies had not provided material support for this campaign of chaos, and would not come to their aid after this perceived betrayal—never mind that he had belittled the institution, harangued its members and threatened to invade and annex a couple. Houthi forces have launched missiles into Israeli territory and explosions were heard in Damascus. Iranian drones attacked the Prince Sultan Airbase in Al Kharj, damaging several refuelling aircraft and severely injuring a dozen US troops following reports that the Saudi government is urging Trump to continue the war. Iranian nuclear facilities again came under attack, including a deuterium complex and a yellowcake uranium enrichment plant. Intelligence suggests that Russia is working to replenish Iran’s drone and ballistic missile stocks, returning some of the munitions and supplying new ones from the Iranian surplus used in prosecuting its war on Ukraine. Only seen in the news lately following a ruling that he had mislead investors during his hostile take over of the microblogging platform Twitter, for some reason Elon Musk was included on a call with Trump to India’s president Narendra Modi earlier in the week about ending the conflict in the Middle East.

synchronoptica

one year ago: more on Fermi’s paradox (with synchronopticæ), embroidery artist Tomoko Kubo, introspective descriptors plus Chinese gaslighting

 

twelve years ago: invalid characters 

 

fourteen years ago: commuting companion plus euro coinage

 

fifteen years ago: academic prejudice against Wikipedia