US President Doanld Trump has proclaimed the “death of Iran,” adding that now, “the greatest enemy America has is the Radical Left, Highly Incompetent, Democrat Party!” Meanwhile, Iranian missiles continue to rock Israel.

Strikes on the cities of Dimona and Arad in Southern Israel have left 36 people hospitalized, including 19 children. Visiting one of the sites, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was a “miracle” that no one was killed and urged residents to shelter when they hear a warning siren.

At least 1,444 people have been killed and 18,551 injured by US-Israeli attacks on Iran since February 28, Iran’s Health Ministry has said. Retaliatory strikes have claimed 18 lives in the Jewish State and 13 at US bases in the region.

Here are the latest developments:

... President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday evening to strike power plants in Iran unless the Strait of Hormuz is reopened within 48 hours. Iran has kept the crucial waterway closed to most shipping since the outbreak of the war on February 28.

Trump issued his ultimatum after failing to convince other NATO members to help the US police Hormuz, while strikes on Iran’s naval bases and warships did not restore navigation.

Earlier on Saturday, Iran struck the southern Israeli city of Dimona, home to a large nuclear city, which is believed to be a part of Israel’s long-rumored nuclear weapons program. Iranian state TV said the missile barrage was a response to the strike on one of Iran’s key nuclear sites in Natanz. 

The US is planning an invasion of Kharg Island, and Mohammad Marandi goes off on the bounty on his head placed by Israel for exposing the truth and discusses why the planned invasion will end in catastrophe.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwT1egTQdME&t=24s

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Im9bDWAoaQ

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I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE BLACK DOG INSTITUTE HAS FOR BREAKFAST, BUT I HAVE THE FEELING IT IS WRONG ON ITS ASSESSMENT OF DEPRESSION IN TEENAGERS. BUT WHAT DO I KNOW... YES BAD SLEEP AND HAVING TROUBLE AT HOME ARE NO HELP TO ACHIEVE HAPPINESS...

BUT THERE ARE VERY VERY VERY STRONG FACTORS THAT ARE AT THE CORE OF THE PROBLEM. BAD SLEEP AND TROUBLE AT HOME ARE OFTEN ONLY SIDE-EFFECTS, NOR CENTRAL CAUSES...

SO WHAT ARE THE MAIN CAUSES:

A) DISCOVERING THAT ONE HAS BEEN LIED TO SINCE CHILDHOOD: THE SUBJECTS ARE NUMEROUS, FROM RELIGION TO POLITICS AND BEHAVIOURAL ACTIVITIES. THIS CONTINUES WITH SOCIAL MEDIA WHICH MIGHT BE ATTRACTIVE, BUT ENDS UP DISTURBING OUR SLEEP PATTERNS.

B) SEX: SEX IS NATURAL BUT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, TEENAGERS ARE ILL-INFORMED OR MAL-INFORMED ABOUT IT. RUTHLESS PEDDLERS SELL PORN AS A WAY TO HELP... IT'S DESTRUCTIVE.

I wanted to use a portrait of Che Guevara, the heroic guerrilla fighter, as my logo, and I made a mistake. I used Trump, the orange-clad pedophile.

Ugh!

Cuba, a “failed state in decline,” constitutes an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to the United States, claims Trump, who is considering a friendly takeover of the island — or maybe not. It doesn't matter, because they are truly at their wits' end. They have no more energy. They have no more money. They are in a critical humanitarian situation.

In truth, it is not Cuba's military or economic power that they fear, but the force of its example.

The best thing to do is read this article:

From Trump to Putin [NUPE*], the narratives leaders tell themselves shape global conflict – and the war in Iran shows the consequences when belief overrides reality.

If the worst calculations are correct – that it will take many years for Australia and the world to recover from the economic fallout of the US and Israeli war on Iran – then the US will have done more harm to the so-called free world than China or any other ‘unfriendly’ nation is ever likely to have done in the foreseeable future.

George Browning

How did this happen? Why did this happen?

US President Donald Trump has gloated over the death of Robert Mueller, a key figure behind the Russiagate probe, stating he will no longer be able to “hurt innocent people.” 

Mueller, who led the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2001 to 2013, passed away on Saturday, aged 81. Between 2017 and 2019, he was a special counsel overseeing the probe into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and related issues, including alleged ties between Trump and Moscow.

Shortly after the news of Mueller’s death broke, the US president took to his Truth Social platform to openly celebrate the occasion.  

“Robert Mueller just died. Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!” Trump wrote.

The major parties have learned to control the narrative at the expense of courage, with policy reduced to fragments, slogans, and lines tested for survival, not truth. Andrew Brown on why Labor is no longer the party of reform. Part 3 of 6.

Political retreat does not arrive with a speech or a surrender. It is learned. Then it becomes instinct.

Kabuki politics. Style over substance, controlling the narrative

by Andrew Brown

Governments study their environment the way an animal studies an electric fence. First, they test it. Then they flinch before touching it. Eventually, they do not need the shock. They carry it inside themselves. What passes for caution is often nothing more than internalised fear.

We reported earlier that President Trump has again expressed his extreme frustration at lack of direct NATO participation in a plan to open up the Strait of Hormuz. He declared the US has "militarily WON" - and lambasted lack of allied interest in a "simple military maneuver" to open the Strait of Hormuz, calling NATO a "Paper Tiger" without the US.

These Seven Allies Concocted A 'Hormuz Coalition' Statement To Placate Trump, Which Failed

BY TYLER DURDEN

Now in its third week, the Iran war has engulfed the Middle East, killed more than 2,000 people and sent oil prices skyrocketing worldwide. The United States and Israel continue to strike Iran daily. Israel is also fighting the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon.

In response, the Iranian regime — now led by Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — has launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel and at U.S. military targets in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. By threatening to bomb ships, Tehran has forced the Strait of Hormuz to close, blocking one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.

The losses the U.S. military currently incurs in its war on Iran continue to accumulate.

ABC News confirms that Iran has managed to destroy at least 10 radar installation in the Middle East. Most of these were U.S. owned while the rest were supplied to U.S. allies. The loss of early warning radar lets more Iranian missile slip through the U.S. missile defense curtain. It will cause more losses in other installations especially in Israel.

Antony Loewenstein examines how Israel’s modern identity has been shaped by a powerful founding idea: the creation of the “strong Jew.”

In this conversation, he unpacks how early Zionist leaders, including David Ben-Gurion, framed a new national identity in direct contrast to the perceived “weakness” of European Jews during the Holocaust — a framing that ignores the reality of widespread Jewish resistance under Nazi rule.

We also explore how this narrative continues to influence Israeli politics and public messaging today, particularly in moments of conflict. From government rhetoric praising national resilience, to disparities in civilian protection between Jewish and Palestinian communities, Loewenstein argues that power, perception, and storytelling remain central to how the war is understood — both inside Israel and globally.

This episode looks at:

Sept. 4, 2012 -- quicklist: 1title: Chuck Norris Warns of '1,000 Years of Darkness' If Obama Re-Elected text: Action film actor and martial artist Chuck Norris issued a grave warning to America's voters this week: Head to the ballot box, or sentence your children to "1,000 years of darkness."

Norris, along with his wife Gena, filmed a two-minute video urging people to "unite for God and country" by casting their ballots against Obama this November.

A Supreme Court ruling, an unauthorised war and open defiance of legal limits point to a presidency no longer constrained by institutions – but defined by them being ignored.

Mark S Pirie,  Christopher Tang