(01-09-2020 12:00 PM)mrbig Wrote:  From a purely intellectual level, I am curious to see how the Iran situation plays out. While Iran's public response was obviously less than feared, the bigger concern seems to be how all the different groups that Soleimani had contacts with respond. If Trump ends up getting a better deal in the end without additional loss of life or another war in the middle east, then I'll be happy for him and our country. I'll cross my fingers, but not hold my breath.

What has changed is that we have made it known that if you mess with us, we will hit you back, and make it hurt. We've tried being nice for 40 years, and it has not worked. Proportional responses don't work either, because that's playing for a tie, and when you play for a tie you get a tie--otherwise known as a quagmire. See Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

We need disproportionate responses to make it clear that we are in it to win. Never fight a war that you don't intend to win. There may (or may not) be a couple more iterations, but once Iran figures it out, we will be fine.