Head of Snake chopped off.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

French General Michel Yakovleff just compared joining Trump's Iran war to "buying cheap tickets for the Titanic" after it already hit the iceberg. And then it got even worse for Trump.
Yakovleff is no random talking head. He's a three-star general, former commander of the legendary French Foreign Legion, and held senior positions within NATO itself. He is one of the most respected military voices in France and regularly weighs in on matters of international security.
So when he was asked about Trump's desperate pleas for Europe to join his Iran catastrophe, his answer carried serious weight.
He didn't mince words. He laid out five distinct reasons why every European nation should flatly refuse. And each one is more damaging than the last.
First, Trump doesn't understand how NATO actually works. You don't get to launch your own unilateral bombing campaign and then invite allies to run a separate operation underneath you. That's not how alliances function.
If Trump wants NATO involved, NATO takes command. One operation, one flag, one chain of command. "I don't think he understood that," Yakovleff said. That alone is a devastating indictment of a man who claims to be the greatest dealmaker on earth
.
Second, nobody knows what the actual strategic goals are. Beyond forcing open the Strait of Hormuz, what is the endgame? Regime change? Containment? A negotiated settlement? Trump hasn't said. He apparently can't say, because he doesn't know himself.
Third, and this one is particularly brutal, you can't coordinate a multinational military campaign through tweets that change every two minutes. If allied nations are going to put their soldiers in harm's way, they need explicit, written objectives from the United States. As Yakovleff put it, "It's going to be necessary for Trump himself to know what he wants." The quiet contempt in that sentence could strip paint off a wall.
Fourth, there is the fundamental issue of trust. Trump has abandoned allies before and everyone knows he would do it again without hesitation the moment it became politically useful. The Kurds know it. The Afghans know it. Europe knows it. "He would let us down whenever it suited him," the general said. Why would any nation put troops on the line for a leader with that track record?
And fifth, the knockout punch. Yakovleff cited a principle he said he learned at the U.S. Army War College: "You don't reinforce failure. You move on. You find something else." A decorated French general is using American military doctrine, taught in American war colleges, to explain to the world why following this American president into battle would be strategic malpractice.
The global response has been just as damning. Japan said no. Australia said no. The United Kingdom said no. The European Union said no. Meanwhile, Iranian missiles and drones have made the Strait of Hormuz so dangerous that insurance companies won't cover oil tankers passing through it.
Twenty percent of the world's petroleum normally flows through that strait. Oil prices are skyrocketing and consumers everywhere are feeling it.
Trump started this. He escalated it. He isolated America from its allies in the process.

[sinkov]

French General Michel Yakovleff just compared joining Trump's Iran war to "buying cheap tickets for the Titanic" after it already hit the iceberg. And then it got even worse for Trump.
Yakovleff is no random talking head. He's a three-star general, former commander of the legendary French Foreign Legion, and held senior positions within NATO itself. He is one of the most respected military voices in France and regularly weighs in on matters of international security.
So when he was asked about Trump's desperate pleas for Europe to join his Iran catastrophe, his answer carried serious weight.
He didn't mince words. He laid out five distinct reasons why every European nation should flatly refuse. And each one is more damaging than the last.
First, Trump doesn't understand how NATO actually works. You don't get to launch your own unilateral bombing campaign and then invite allies to run a separate operation underneath you. That's not how alliances function.
If Trump wants NATO involved, NATO takes command. One operation, one flag, one chain of command. "I don't think he understood that," Yakovleff said. That alone is a devastating indictment of a man who claims to be the greatest dealmaker on earth
.
Second, nobody knows what the actual strategic goals are. Beyond forcing open the Strait of Hormuz, what is the endgame? Regime change? Containment? A negotiated settlement? Trump hasn't said. He apparently can't say, because he doesn't know himself.
Third, and this one is particularly brutal, you can't coordinate a multinational military campaign through tweets that change every two minutes. If allied nations are going to put their soldiers in harm's way, they need explicit, written objectives from the United States. As Yakovleff put it, "It's going to be necessary for Trump himself to know what he wants." The quiet contempt in that sentence could strip paint off a wall.
Fourth, there is the fundamental issue of trust. Trump has abandoned allies before and everyone knows he would do it again without hesitation the moment it became politically useful. The Kurds know it. The Afghans know it. Europe knows it. "He would let us down whenever it suited him," the general said. Why would any nation put troops on the line for a leader with that track record?
And fifth, the knockout punch. Yakovleff cited a principle he said he learned at the U.S. Army War College: "You don't reinforce failure. You move on. You find something else." A decorated French general is using American military doctrine, taught in American war colleges, to explain to the world why following this American president into battle would be strategic malpractice.
The global response has been just as damning. Japan said no. Australia said no. The United Kingdom said no. The European Union said no. Meanwhile, Iranian missiles and drones have made the Strait of Hormuz so dangerous that insurance companies won't cover oil tankers passing through it.
Twenty percent of the world's petroleum normally flows through that strait. Oil prices are skyrocketing and consumers everywhere are feeling it.
Trump started this. He escalated it. He isolated America from its allies in the process.

Michael Shurkin has this to say on X, fairly succinct and to the point.

"Sorry. I mean no disrespect to Yakovleff, whose work I've studied and admire. I am a fan. But I am fairly certain I am the only American who has heard of him before, has read him, and has any interest in what he says."

I have to agree with Mr Shurkin, the day I find an American with the slightest interest in what a cheese-eating surrender monkey has to say on matters military, I'll show my arse in Burton's window.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Michael Shurkin has this to say on X, fairly succinct and to the point.

"Sorry. I mean no disrespect to Yakovleff, whose work I've studied and admire. I am a fan. But I am fairly certain I am the only American who has heard of him before, has read him, and has any interest in what he says."

I have to agree with Mr Shurkin, the day I find an American with the slightest interest in what a cheese-eating surrender monkey has to say on matters military, I'll show my arse in Burton's window.

And yet you refuse to accept the Iranians will not surrender like a cheese-eating surrender monkey. Strange choice of words is that mon ami.

[sinkov]

And yet you refuse to accept the Iranians will not surrender like a cheese-eating surrender monkey. Strange choice of words is that mon ami.

What I find strange is that you manage to find a French Military expert to criticise the US and Israeli operation in the Gulf, while at the same time France has sent 14 plus warships to help with the operation. It seems that in France la main droite doesn't know what la main gauche is doing. Perhaps you should ask your cheese-eating surrender monkey chum to have word in the shell-like of Mr Macron.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Macron is a pfhucking idiot who wants to be considered a global political superstar.

The French Navy couldn't put a fag out.

Anyway BREAKING: Mark Kelly CONFRONTS Tulsi Gabbard in fiery clash over Trump’s disgraceful war dead fundraising ploy.
It was the moment that cut through the noise — and exposed just how far things have gone.
During a tense Senate hearing, Senator Mark Kelly, a combat veteran, directly confronted Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard over a jaw-dropping fundraising scheme tied to Donald Trump — one that reportedly used images of fallen U.S. troops to solicit campaign cash.
And Kelly didn’t mince words.
With visible disbelief, he pressed Gabbard on whether it was acceptable for a sitting president’s political operation to dangle access to “private national security briefings” in exchange for donations — all while invoking the sacrifice of service members killed in action.
Gabbard’s response? She claimed she wasn’t familiar with the email.
That answer didn’t fly.
Kelly immediately shot back, noting the document had been public for days and making clear that ignorance wasn’t good enough — not when the issue at hand involves both national security and basic human decency.
Because let’s be clear: this wasn’t just another campaign email.
It was a grotesque attempt to turn national tragedy into political profit — leveraging the image of fallen heroes while promising donors insider access to sensitive information. A “pay-to-play” pitch wrapped in patriotism, aimed straight at Trump’s base.
And Kelly, who has worn the uniform himself, wasn’t about to let it slide. His interrogation cut to the core of the scandal: Are we now selling access to national security? Are grieving families’ sacrifices fair game for campaign fundraising?
The silence and deflection that followed spoke volumes.
This is exactly why accountability matters. This is exactly why oversight exists. And thanks to Kelly’s relentless questioning, the American people got a glimpse of a deeply disturbing reality — one where lines that should never be crossed are being obliterated in the pursuit of power and money.
If this doesn’t outrage you, it should, but I know it won't mon ami..

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Lion Heart Macron, "This escalation is reckless,” President Emmanuel Macron of France said on Thursday after the latest tit-for-tat attacks on energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf.

“I hope everyone comes to their senses,” he told reporters in Brussels. Macron noted that shipping was already disrupted in the Strait of Hormuz. “But if the production facilities themselves are destroyed, the impact of this war will be much more long-lasting,” he said.

Not a French Navy vessel in site. The French posture and grandstand like no-one else can.

[ClaretinBudapest]

The USA has no time for, or need for bedwetters, or as Mr Vance calls them, pearl-clutchers. Neither have I.

Joe Kent is a former soldier with the US Army Special Forces who completed 11 combat deployments, including tours during the US-led war in Iraq.

His first wife, Shannon Kent, a US Navy cryptologic technician, was killed in Syria in 2019 in a suicide bombing; she left behind two children.

After leaving the military, Kent worked as a paramilitary officer for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) before launching a political career.

He was a Green Beret FFS.If thats a bedwetter then where does bone spurs Trump stand?

[ClaretinBudapest]

I cannot wait until they all have to call Vlad because your mate Trump will soon be curbing exports of Oil and LNG in order to keep prices down in the US.It will be laugh a minute when they all have to go cap in hand to Vlad.

[ClaretinBudapest]

Macron is a pfhucking idiot who wants to be considered a global political superstar.

The French Navy couldn't put a fag out.

Anyway BREAKING: Mark Kelly CONFRONTS Tulsi Gabbard in fiery clash over Trump?s disgraceful war dead fundraising ploy.
It was the moment that cut through the noise ? and exposed just how far things have gone.
During a tense Senate hearing, Senator Mark Kelly, a combat veteran, directly confronted Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard over a jaw-dropping fundraising scheme tied to Donald Trump ? one that reportedly used images of fallen U.S. troops to solicit campaign cash.
And Kelly didn?t mince words.
With visible disbelief, he pressed Gabbard on whether it was acceptable for a sitting president?s political operation to dangle access to ?private national security briefings? in exchange for donations ? all while invoking the sacrifice of service members killed in action.
Gabbard?s response? She claimed she wasn?t familiar with the email
That answer didn?t fly.
Kelly immediately shot back, noting the document had been public for days and making clear that ignorance wasn?t good enough ? not when the issue at hand involves both national security and basic human decency.
Because let?s be clear: this wasn?t just another campaign email.
It was a grotesque attempt to turn national tragedy into political profit ? leveraging the image of fallen heroes while promising donors insider access to sensitive information. A ?pay-to-play? pitch wrapped in patriotism, aimed straight at Trump?s base.
And Kelly, who has worn the uniform himself, wasn?t about to let it slide. His interrogation cut to the core of the scandal: Are we now selling access to national security? Are grieving families? sacrifices fair game for campaign fundraising?
The silence and deflection that followed spoke volumes.
This is exactly why accountability matters. This is exactly why oversight exists. And thanks to Kelly?s relentless questioning, the American people got a glimpse of a deeply disturbing reality ? one where lines that should never be crossed are being obliterated in the pursuit of power and money.
If this doesn?t outrage you, it should, but I know it won't mon ami..

I am surprised Gabbard has not jumped ship.She seemed to have a bit more about her.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

From a lass in Texas:
"I need to talk about Joe Kent for a minute because I have been sitting in this Suburban in the school pickup line for twenty minutes and I cannot stop thinking about it.
"Joe Kent. Green Beret. Eleven combat deployments. CIA paramilitary officer. His wife Shannon was killed by a suicid@ b@mber in Syria while serving her country. He buried her and kept going. Donald Trump hand picked this man. Did a whole press conference. Did the thumbs up photo. Told America this was the guy who would keep us safe. Put him in charge of the entire National Counterterrorism Center.
"That was thirteen months ago.
"Yesterday it was, 'I always thought he was weak on security. Very weak on security. I didn't know him well.'
"Sir, you nominated him. You stood at the podium. You said the words into a microphone. There is video.
"And I want to be real clear about what Joe Kent's crime was. He did not sell secrets. He did not compromise an operation. He read the intelligence that his own agency produced, the same intelligence the Pentagon showed Congress, and he said out loud what the briefings already showed. Iran was not about to attack us. There was no imminent threat. The whole justification did not hold up.
"For that, a man who buried his wife got called weak. By a man who told a doctor his feet hurt so he would not have to go to Vietnam.
"I need you to sit with that for a second. Eleven combat deployments. Called weak on security. By a man whose most dangerous military experience was finding his way to the buffet at Mar-a-Lago during a power outage.
"And here is the part that should keep every Republican up at night. Kent was not some resistance liberal. This man called January 6 defendants political prisoners. Said the 2020 election was stolen. He was as loyal as they come. He was one of theirs.
"And the second he said maybe we should not be starting a war because someone else asked us to, they turned on him like he had never existed. Bless his heart, he thought the loyalty went both directions.
"Trump's adviser called him a 'crazed egomaniac.' Senior White House officials suddenly discovered he was a leaker. Congressman Don Bacon said good riddance and slapped the antisemitism label on him before the post was even finished loading. They had the whole thing ready to go before Kent's resignation letter hit the outbox. Almost like they have done this before.
"And then there is Tulsi Gabbard. The Director of National Intelligence. The woman who built her entire political career on being the anti-war voice in the room. Who stood on debate stages and lectured everyone about the horrors of interventionism. Who Kent served as chief of staff.
"She has not said a word. The woman who never once stopped talking about opposing wars in the Middle East has gone quieter than a church mouse at a cat convention. Her silence could fill the Astrodome.
"Jennifer told me in the carpool lane this morning that Tulsi is probably just 'picking her battles.' I told Jennifer that Tulsi's entire battle was already picked. That was the whole thing. That was her one thing. Jennifer nodded like that made sense and then went back to her phone.
"Now Trump says Iran was a threat and every country knew it. Every country, he said. Except Australia said no. Japan said no. Italy said no. The EU's top diplomat went on camera and said this is not Europe's war. So when he says every country, he means one country. And whoever he is currently threatening with tariffs.
"And the justification for this has changed more times than I can count. First it was about protecting Iranian protesters. Then nuclear weapons. Then long range missiles. Then forty five years of terrorism. The story shifts every forty eight hours like a teenager explaining why they smell like cigarettes. I was holding them for a friend. Also the friend does not exist. Also shut up.
"The Pentagon's own briefings confirmed Iran was not planning to attack unless struck first. Kent had the clearance. He saw the intelligence. And he said it out loud, which in this administration is apparently worse than anything the war itself has done.
"Thirteen American soldiers dead. Over fourteen hundred Iranians killed, including children at a school. And the one person in the building with the combat experience, the security clearance, and a dead wife who said this is not worth more American blood gets told he is not smart, not savvy, and it is a good thing he is gone.
"You know what is weak. Starting a war you cannot explain, watching your own people come home in boxes, and then big manning the one guy who had the nerve to say stop. That is not strength. That is an insecure man throwing a fit because somebody told him the truth and he did not have a comeback.
"Kent told Trump in his resignation letter that he could reverse course and chart a new path. Trump went on camera and called him stupid within the hour.
"Every serving member of the United States military should read this story and understand what it means. Your sacrifice, your deployments, your dead spouse, your twenty years of service mean absolutely nothing the second you stop clapping.
"You are not a hero. You are a prop. And the moment you stop holding still for the photo, they will call you weak and crazy and disloyal before your resignation email even sends.
"I told Jennifer that and she said that is just how politics works. I said no ma'am. That is how a protection racket works. She said she thought a protection racket was a tennis thing and then asked if I wanted to split a Topo Chico.
"I did not want a Topo Chico. I wanted someone to explain to me how a Gold Star husband with eleven combat deployments gets called stupid by a man who has never sacrificed anything heavier than a golf cart.
"But nobody is going to explain that. Because in this version of the party, loyalty is a one way street. And the traffic is always heading toward you."
~Texas Mom