U. S. "Dark Fleet"

Not to avoid sanctions but to circumvent the Irsnian blockade. 6/10/26 CNBC:

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. military has secretly helped 200 commercial ships and more than 100 million barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz.

I have found the relatively low price of oil globally with the Strait of Hormuz closed.  The amount moved (at night without lights) is a fraction of thr normal transport so oil is still tight but at least our allies (Australia, Japan, South Korea) should get some benefit.  Our erstwhile allies even benefit. If only they were helping! Of course, the Royal Navy is now not even a shadow of its former self, more like a shadow of a ghost so expecting their help is unrealistic.  Besides, they have emerging impolite opposition forming. 

The Declining Importance of the Strsight of Hormuz

No, not a MAGA talking point. 6/4/26 New York Times:

But with every passing day, the world is learning to live without the Gulf’s seaborne exports.

1Just as the Covid-19 pandemic and President Trump’s tariffs forced a significant rewiring of global supply chains, the Strait’s closure has prompted a similar adjustment. You might be part of it. When gas prices rise rapidly, people start to limit their driving. Walmart just reported that customers are now buying less than 10 gallons of gas at a time on average at its filling stations.

The United States, Brazil, Canada, Kazakhstan and Venezuela are already increasing their oil production. Large releases of crude oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve are also helping to cover shortfalls. Like a stream that finds its way around a fallen log, markets locate new supplies when the old ones are suddenly cut off.

At some point, the Iranian crazies will get poor enough for their religious objections to evaporate. By then, Iran will be a less important source of oil. And on the bright side, reduced consumption of oil will make the world a better place for Greenies.

It Appears Iran's Government Wants More Visits

 4/18/26 AP:

Iran swiftly reversed course on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, warning that it would continue to block transit as long as the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect.

Iran said Friday it fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels, but U.S. President Donald Trump said the American blockade on Iranian ships and ports “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the U.S., including on its nuclear program.

Iranian officials said the blockade was a violation of last week’s ceasefire agreement between Iran and the U.S. The strait “will not remain open” if the blockade continues, Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, posted on X early Saturday. Trump imposed the blockade earlier this week after Iran restricted traffic through the strait due to fighting in Lebanon, which Iran claimed was a breach of the Pakistan-brokered ceasefire. Trump later suggested a second round of direct US-Iran talks could happen this weekend.

I have seen it suggested that no one is really in control in Iran, and their diplomats are making deals that others in the government do not approve.

When Trump Decides What Needs Doing...

4/17/26 CNBC:

U.S. stocks rocketed higher on Friday after Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz “completely open” on the heels of a ceasefire announcement between Israel and Lebanon.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 1,005 points, or 2.1%. The S&P 500 traded up 1.3%, crossing 7,100 for the first time, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.5%, with both hitting new all-time intraday highs. The Russell 2000 also reached a fresh high. The small-cap index was last up 2%.

If Trump keeps going, peace will break out everywhere and Democrats will commit group suicide.  He is an evil man, isn't he?

Mine Clearance is Hard

Especially because the Iranians apparently made no attempt to map where they put them. Also, the mines attempt dropped are pretty sophisticated.  They listen for large propellers and a large magnetometer reading, like a tanker. Also, it counts ships, going off after some programmed number 

The U.S. took its dedicated mine clearance ships (non-steel hulls) out of service in 2025. The current clearing is slow and likely not 100% certain. When a few months of now, a tanker gets blown up, count on the Democrats to blame Trump not Iran.

I have heard it suggested that Trump may not be in any hurry to clear the mines. Oil sales by the U.S. are helping our balance of payments situation; reduced or uncertain delivery of oil to China disarms the nation with which we are most likely to go war with before 2030; it starves Iran's sales to nations not participating in sanctions against Iran. 

Iran could build a pipeline to ports outside the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's oil fields are in or on the Persian Gulf or the Caspian Sea. From reading maps, that looks like 500 or more kilometers from the oil fields to a port on the Gulf of Oman. (And very mountainous.) How many days per kilometer does it take to build an oil pipeline?

Not a Full Blockade

From reading Centcom's description this is not a blockade of Hormuz but of ships leaving Iranian ports. Much more sensible:

TAMPA, Fla. — U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces will begin implementing a blockade of all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports on April 13 at 10 a.m. ET, in accordance with the President’s proclamation.

And 4/12/26 The Hill  reports our Navy is clearing mines to open passage for other nations.

I wish Trump would be clearer when he makes statements on Truth Social.

Blockadong Hormuz Looks Like a Mistske

Iran doing so is a violation of international law. The U.S. doing so is as well. Removing the mines was and is the right strategy. I understand the need to end ziran's nuclear ambitions but this seems a poorly thought out plan.

Maybe We Should Bill Them

Fox News is reporting that Iran cannot locate the mines it laid in the Strait, which is probably why the U.S. Navy is currently clearing mines. Again, the nation's most dependent on the Strait are doing nothing. Again, subsidizing the welfare states of nations that have relied upon us for decades. 

The good news us that Trump is reminding all tankers that we have oil and LPG for sale, no mines!

A friend suggests the facility that kept the records may have a serious problem with failure to exist.

Clearing the Strait

 4/11/26 Time:

President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States had started “clearing out” the Strait of Hormuz, just as the first direct peace talks between Iran and the U.S. began in Pakistan. 

“We’re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to Countries all over the World, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. 

There are some technical issues that I have seen discussed but it can be done. Yet more America doing the heavy lifting for countries that could do their part. 

Cease Fire Matters

DJIA up 2.65%. NASDAQ up 3%. To satirize a 1960s slogan: "War is not good for corporations and other selling things."

The Threat to Bomb Them into The Stone Age Worked

4/7/26 CBS News:

Ahead of his 8 p.m. ET deadline, President Trump announced that he has agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, provided Iran agrees to a "COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING" of the Strait of Hormuz, while negotiations mediated by Pakistan continue. Mr. Trump wrote on Truth Social that Iran provided a 10-point peace proposal, calling it a "workable basis on which to negotiate.

Israel has also agreed to the contours of the ceasefire agreement, a White House official told CBS News.

That Missing Airman

 4/5/26 CNN:

Hiding alone in a mountain crevice behind enemy lines, the injured American airman knew exactly what to do: survive and evade.

For more than a day, the weapons systems officer whose F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down inside Iran avoided being captured by encroaching Iranian forces. At one point, he scaled the rugged terrain to a ridgeline 7,000 feet above sea level, equipped with little more than a pistol, a communication device and a tracking beacon.

It was into the high mountains that a team of American commandos, accompanied by US aircraft dropping bombs to clear the area, swarmed to locate the officer, bringing him and themselves to safety.

A Reminder of What Universities Give America

 3/26/26 Daily Caller presents an Instagram video (which is why I have not included it here:

Shocking video from a radical anti-Iran war protest in Philadelphia showed participants explicitly supporting Islamic terror groups and calling for “cheers” every time an American servicemember comes home “in a casket.”

It also calls for support for Hamas and Hamas. Remember who hates women. 

The Guy Who Resigned From Trump Administration Over Iran War

 3/17/26 New York Times tells a story that suggests his decision is a bit more complex and sad than some have portrayed it:

In his resignation letter on Tuesday, Joe Kent, a top counterterrorism official, criticized the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. But he also mentioned his “beloved wife,” a Navy linguist who was killed in a suicide bombing in Syria in January 2019.

Chief Petty Officer Shannon Kent was 35.

Chief Kent was assigned to Cryptologic Warfare Activity 66, a Navy unit that supports the National Security Agency and military special operations forces. She was supporting the latter at the time of her death....

On Jan. 16, 2019, Chief Kent was meeting with a source at a restaurant in Manbij, Syria, when a suicide bomber killed her and three other Americans.

Chief Kent was posthumously promoted to senior chief.

“She should have been out of Syria because Trump gave the order to get those guys out of there,” Mr. Kent said on the “Shawn Ryan Show” podcast. “And then you have the administrative state dragging their heels and desperately trying to keep us in these conflicts.”

In his resignation letter, Mr. Kent cited what he said was Israel’s influence over the Trump administration’s policies. Some lawmakers called Mr. Kent’s remarks on Israel antisemitic, and critics mentioned his support for conspiracy theories.

Mr. Kent wrote that he “cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” adding, “I cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives.”

The desire to avoid a ground war is completely understandable. Trump seems to share that view. 

UPDATE: Breitbart is reporting:

Former director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) Joe Kent is reportedly being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for “allegedly leaking classified information.”

Shelby Talcott, a White House Correspondent for Semafor, reported that according to “three sources,” Kent, who resigned from his position on Tuesday, is being investigated by the FBI. The alleged investigation “pre-dates his departure.”

Remember the Black Knight Scene From Monty Python and the Holy Grail?

Where having lost both legs and arms to King Arthur he insists that combat is not over? 3/17/26 Daily Mail:

Iran's supreme leader says the US and Israel 'must be brought to their knees and accept defeat' before any peace deal can be agreed, Tehran claims - with new Ayatollah still yet to be seen

In case you have forgotten here.

I Do Not Generally Support Outing People

But when it is the head of a nation that hangs homosexuals, it is delicious. 3/16/26 New York Post:

WASHINGTON —  President Trump was stunned to learn last week that US intelligence indicates new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei may be gay — and that his father, the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, feared his suitability to rule the Islamic Republic for that reason, The Post can reveal.

Trump couldn’t contain his surprise and laughed aloud when he was briefed on the intel, according to sources.

Perhaps the Caliphate of Lesser Britain is Farther Away Than We Thought

Just watching a YouTube video of B1s lining up and taking off from RAF Fairford a couple of days ago.

More About the Weak Response From the Islamic Nation of Britain

3/4/26 BBC. Let me also mention that the Conservative MP who savaged Starmer's failure was black.

Sir Keir said: "We're taking action to reduce the threat with planes in the sky in the region intercepting incoming strikes, deploying more capability to Cyprus, and allowing US planes to use UK bases to take out Iran's capability to strike.

"What I was not prepared to do on Saturday was for the UK to join a war unless I was satisfied there was a lawful basis and a viable, thought-through plan. That remains my position."

The PM said the government had also been pre-deploying capabilities in the region for a number of weeks, including radar systems, ground-based air defence, counter-drone systems and F35 jets.

He added that wildcat helicopters with anti-drone capabilities would be in Cyprus this week, with a Royal Navy warship, HMS Dragon, also deployed to the region.

However, Badenoch accused the PM of "catching arrows rather than stopping the archer" in his approach.

"I would say to Labour MPs, we are in this war whether they like it or not. What is the prime minister waiting for?" she added.

She pointed out HMS Dragon was still in Portsmouth and the government "should be doing more".

The Conservative leader also criticised the government for not investing more in defence....

A western official said that so far US bombers have not used the British bases of Diego Garcia or RAF Fairford - but said the UK was ready to accept them. The official said he expected them to arrive within the next few days.

Earlier, former Conservative Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said he thought the prime minister had "made a big misjudgement" by not allowing the US to use British military bases for offensive strikes on Iran.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that international law was "not settled on this issue" and depended on whether there was an imminent risk of attack from Iran.

Hunt said the Americans had a significant role in defending Europe and in this situation, "to weaken our alliance with the United States was a big mistake".

"President Trump is not interested in that rules-based order," Hunt said.

"He's said so absolutely explicitly. And we have to recognise the brute strength of the American military is something we depend on now in Europe and will depend on for at least a decade."

Hunt is obviously part of the reality-based system. 

PM Starmer

Now he is saying that they are deploying F35s to protect allies against Iranian attacks. Also the U.S. is again free to use bases in the U.K. for the Iran war 

Iran Missed the Memo From the English Caliphate

3/3/26 Axios:

Cyprus: Drones struck the British Royal Air Force base at Akrotiri in Cyprus, pulling the U.K. and the European Union into the conflict. Cypriot press reported the strikes likely came from Hezbollah. 

And Starmer had refused to give U.S. permission to use bases in the U.K. Fat lot of good it did them.