Iran and the Nuclear Nightmare

Or, how the US created a disastrous situation, then doubled down on it.

Good morning friends. Hope you are all well.

So, now we have involved ourselves in a war with Iran. Iran is not Iraq or Afghanistan. Remember how long we were stuck there? Iran is a large country (88 million as of 2024)¹ with intelligent persons and more modern than Iraq or Afghanistan. Don’t be fooled by the regime that runs Iran. Iran has a theocratic form of government, harsh, authoritarian, and unwilling to tolerate dissent. But they are not dummies.

If you are looking for dummies, look no further.

Bibi Netanyahu finally got his wish with the bombing of the three nuclear sites in Iran. He has been asking American presidents to do this for years, going all the way back to George W. Bush.² It is my personal opinion that while our regime had initiated talks with Iran, Israel was determined to prevent those talks from being pursued and that led to their unprovoked attack on Iran. Bibi knows how to play Trump like the buffoon he is, and after some cajoling and hints of how great this would make trump look, trump pulled the trigger. Proving once again what a complete and utter fool he is.

Before you think I am naive about Iran’s government or state sponsorship of terror, let me tell you my experience with Iranians before the rebellion that occurred in 1979. I was in college at that time and I remember all too well the regime of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi. I was friends with a number of Iranians, two in particular who lived on the same dormitory floor I did. The Iranians I knew were all studious, kind, friendly, and generally good people. After the Iranians took over the American embassy in Tehran, their lives became much more difficult.

For one, many of the American students on our floor turned against them and a number of times I and a couple others found ourselves breaking up fights the Americans started with the Iranian students. As if the Iranian students had anything to do with the embassy takeover.

Secondly, the Iranian students in our dorm were stuck in the middle of the whole thing. After one of these incidents, I went into the Iranian’s room with them and talked with them about what they were experiencing. That is when I discovered the flip side of this whole affair. They had not heard from their parents in months. They did not know if they were alive or dead. They claimed not to be supporters of the Ayatollah Khomeini, and I believed them. They were terrified that they were being called back to Iran, unsure what they would face once they got there.

Make no mistake, the Shah’s regime was brutal. Iranians I knew and met over the years all affirm that getting rid of the Shah was a good thing. Every single one of the Iranians I knew had lost friends and family that the Shah’s regime “disappeared.” Sound familiar?

Unfortunately, the Shah’s regime was replaced with a worse regime in many ways. Before moving on from the Shah’s regime - it should be noted that the United States was a big supporter of the Shah. We, Americans, kept him in power much longer than he would have stayed had we stayed out of it. But that was not our policy then. We were playing chess with the USSR and Iran was a key location in the Middle East for us to maintain in the Cold War.

When the Carter administration came to power, Carter began emphasizing human rights much more than previous presidents. This caused the Shah to be viewed as a human rights violator and contributed to his downfall as America withdrew support for him. Then the Ayatollah Khomeini returned from exile and took over as the Supreme Leader of a theocratic government, and so here we are.

In 2016, Obama’s administration along with the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and the United States) and Germany along with substantial support from the European Union (EU) established the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a plan that allowed Iran to have nuclear related sanctions relief in exchange for nuclear concessions. From all indications, the Iranians honored this agreement until trump pulled the United States out of it in 2018. After this, Iran started pursuing fissile uranium and may have been on course to build a nuclear bomb of it’s own, although our own Intelligence Services under trump-appointed Tulsi Gabbard, said they were not. Trump said Gabbard was wrong. Why? Because trump….

So, the estranged relationship that the US currently has with Iran is entirely our fault. We supported the Shah of Iran until we didn’t. Then we did nothing to support the incoming regime rather making them hate us even further. Then we made a deal with them regarding nuclear weapons, which they honored. And then we broke our end of the bargain with them, proving how untrustworthy the United States can be. Is there any doubt why the Iranian regime, for all that it is evil and authoritarian and should be removed, hates the United States?

And now we have bombed their nuclear facilities, which many are saying, “It’s about time.” Including Adam Kinzinger, who generally I agree with. But not on this point.

Of course, trump made it sound like he knows exactly how the bombs damaged (“obliterated”) the nuclear sites. But as everyone who knows anything about military actions, it takes a while before the smoke and dust clears out to see what really occurred.

From what we are beginning to hear, and it is still early, it sounds like the Iranians had moved their uranium and other materials before the attack.³ We will see.

I just provided a very brief overview of the history that Iran and America share going back to the 1950s. I included my personal interactions with Iranians over the years because I find them to be a kind and good people. They are led by insane leaders. I was reminded of a post by The Mouthy Renegade Writer:

The people of Iran are beautiful.

The leaders of Iran are insane.

The people of Israel are beautiful.

The leaders of Israel are insane.

The people of America are beautiful.

The leaders of America are insane. (@themouthyrenegadewriter)

Sums things up quite nicely.

The significance of this unconstitutional attack on a foreign government (i.e. starting a war) will be demonstrated in the days to come. I find it very interesting however, that only in MAGA minds does bombing a sovereign nation not represent an act of war. I don’t know what else you call this.

A few thoughts about this situation. As I noted in this piece:

many Christians view this time as leading up to the return of Christ (aka. the end of the world). Maybe, but maybe not. This bombing however will flow right into that narrative, so MAGAts and Christian Nationalists are giddy with excitement most likely.

However, trump promised “no new wars” or words to that effect. I am not sure why anyone would be surprised that he lied and broke another promise, but there it is. Was this attack justified? No. Was it legal, constitutional? No. Should trump be impeached for this action? Of course. Will trump be impeached because of it? HAHAHAHAHA! You’re kidding right? That would mean the Republicans grew a spine.

We will know more in the upcoming days of course about where this is going to go. I don’t think anyone knows. Least of all trump who is now threatening oil companies not to increase gas prices.

Iran has already indicated it may shut down the Strait of Hormuz, which will cause gas prices to escalate. A lot. Doesn’t matter what the Orange buffoon says, this is the result of effing around and finding out (FAFO). The buffoon did not think through this action any more than he thinks through any action. He really is the worst person to occupy the White House EVER.

Oh and one more thing - trump didn’t even alert the Democratic leadership as he is supposed to do by law. This really is a regime of idiocy.

As for the Iranian people, my heart goes out to them. They deserve so much better. As do we.

All I can say is stay tuned.

Thanks for reading.

Knowledge is power.

Greg

1

Central Intelligence Agency. (n.d.). Explore All Countries - Iran. Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/iran/#terrorism

Abrams, R. (2025, June 23). The U.S. bombed Iran. now what?

2.

Brumfiel, G., & Hurt, A. (2025, June 22). Satellites show damage to Iran’s nuclear program, but experts say it’s not destroyed. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/06/22/nx-s1-5441734/satellites-show-damage-iran-nuclear-program-not-destroyed-experts-say

3.