"Important To Control Emotions": Omar Abdullah As Kashmir Simmers Over Iran

03/03/26 5:04 PM

As Kashmir simmers amid protests against Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's assassination, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said war is not a solution and questioned which law permits the US and Israel to launch an attack on Iran

'Battlefield math' working against Pentagon due to Iran advantage: retired general

03/02/26 1:05 PM

Reacting to a report from Wall Street Journal that there are growing fears of weaponry shortages looming for the Pentagon after Donald Trump ordered an assault on Iran, a retired general claimed the war planners may have made a major miscalculation.Appearing on MS NOW’s “Morning Joe,“ retired United States Army Lieutenant General Mark Hertling explained that when he worked in the Pentagon, one of his duties included war-planning and he understands the constraints that come with limited stocks of weaponry.With regard to Iran, he suggested the invaded country in some ways may have the upper hand since the US has military needs all over the world.“The last thing I'd talk about is the president, when he was talking to the New York Times last night, talked about the amount of munitions that are being used; 2000 strikes as of this morning,” he told co-host Joe Scarborough. “About that number, precision weaponry used in all of them, defensive systems like the Patriot missiles and the THAAD [Terminal High Altitude Area Defense] batteries that are protecting various Gulf states and soldiers in the regions have very expensive missiles that they shoot.”“Those can only last so long, he cautioned. “And as we've said, the intel estimates say that Iran has anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 missiles that they can launch. You can only shoot them down with so many defensive weapons.”“So the dynamics of expenditure gets into something called battlefield math,” he elaborated. “And somebody at the Pentagon is now concluding, where are we taking risk around other places in the world? I know they're doing that in the Pentagon, because that used to be my job when we were in Iraq and Afghanistan in the early 2000’s.” - YouTube youtu.be

'Great way to go to jail': Hegseth's 'rules of engagement' threat sets off alarms

03/02/26 2:06 PM

During a press conference at the Pentagon early morning, DOD Secretary Pete Hegseth launched a belligerent defense of the attack on Iran, and sneered at traditional US allies over “pearl-clutching” and the press for spreading “fake news.”At the same time, he set off a social media firestorm by promising he would set aside traditional rules of engagement designed to prevent war crimes.After an over-the-top claim that the initial attack the US conducted the “most lethal aerial assault in history,” he boasted, “Israel has clear missions as well for which we are grateful. Capable partners are good partners, unlike so many of our traditional allies who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force,” before asserting there would be “no stupid rules of engagement.”That caught the eyes of social media commenters on BlueSky, who expressed alarm at what that might entail.“’No stupid rules of engagement’ means no Geneva Conventions or other international humanitarian laws, which the U.S. signed and supported for more than a century. Hegseth and Trump are pro-war crimes,” observed former Chicago Tribune editor Mark Jacobs.Analyst Leah McElrath wrote, “No stupid rules of engagement” is one for the history books—and not in a good way.”Democratization Policy Council founder Toby Fogel warned, "'no stupid rules of engagement’ is a great way to go to jail for war crimes.”“I don’t know how many times it needs to be said, but rules of engagement are for the safety of our troops as much as they’re for protecting civilian lives. F------ idiot children running the joint,” pointed out academic Lee Papa who goes by “Rude Pundit.”National security analyst Stephanie Carvin wrote, “’No stupid rules of engagement’ is nihilism.”“This is why so many generals think he’s a complete tool,” explained journalist Will Harris.Hegseth: "Israel has clear missions as well for which we are grateful. Capable partners are good partners, unlike so many of our traditional allies who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force ... no stupid rules of engagement."[image or embed]— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) March 2, 2026 at 5:14 AM