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Iran: Options
April 2, 2026
By Gwynne Dyer
The Iranians know they have won, but President Trump doesn’t get it yet.
The only deal the Iranians will discuss is their five-point peace proposal
Trump has 3 options, all of them horrible,
a deal with Iran,
declare victory, walk away and leave Hormuz a mess
(both humiliating)
or nukes.
Donald Trump has a pathological need to avoid being seen as he sees Jimmy Carter's failure to respond aggressively to Iranian radicals, a loser, someone who keeps leeching power over the course of an extended crisis. And yet making shit up as he goes is the most likely way of making that happen.
RE: https://c.im/@cdarwin/116309995909754491
According to Polymarket, Cuba is due for a US strike sooner than later,
and many thousands are waiting for the blood to be spilled so they can collect.
Hours before Donald Trump was sworn in to begin his second term, promising a “golden age” for America,
the leader of a Central European country was describing the years ahead in strikingly similar terms.
Prime Minister #Viktor #Orbán said Trump’s return would usher in Hungary’s own “golden age”
and mark the “collapse” of liberal democracy.
The messaging overlap was no surprise.
Orbán’s strongman style has long served as an inspiration for U.S. conservatives,
who have looked at Hungary as a possible model for a right-wing America
with less immigration,
fewer regulations
and the removal of democratic constraints they see as unwieldy or inconvenient.
Orbán has formed a close bond with Trump and has made multiple visits to the president’s Florida resort.
This week, the prime minister praised Trump’s unilateral outreach to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the war in Ukraine.
During one of last year’s U.S. presidential debates, Trump praised Orbán as “a strong man. He’s a tough person."
https://apnews.com/article/trump-orban-hungary-autocracy-authoritarian-republicans-dfdf6299a614ec4e364be37c1132e446
U.S. conservatives have looked to Hungary's Viktor Orbán as an inspiration for a right-wing America, and the prime minister has become a close ally of President Donald Trump. During Orbán's 15 years in power, he's transformed Hungary from a young democracy into what the European Parliament calls an “electoral autocracy.” The Orbán-Trump relationship is drawing renewed interest as Trump pushes to expand his presidential power in his second term. While the countries’ systems of government are different, there are striking parallels between Trump’s actions and agenda, and what Orbán has achieved in Hungary.
The Washington Post backed out of a $115,000 ad buy from Common Cause and the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund when they saw the message: "Who's running this country: Donald Trump of Elon Musk?"
Here are the ads that Jeff Bezos's newspaper refused to run.
FINALLY! In Paris, Olaf Scholz has had enough of Trump and draws a clear line:
1. Trump talking about peace negotiations and European troops in Ukraine is “deeply annoying”, “wrong”, and “untimely” because Ukraine is not in peace negotiations but in a war.
2. Germany will keep supporting Ukraine (No matter what Trump does).
3. Ukraine must never be forced to accept peace terms.
4. NATO will still be the corner stone of European defence.
In short: Trump can take his ideas and shove them. 🔥
kottke.org
Ken Walker 
emptywheel
Chuck Darwin
Kai Arzheimer
James Gleick
Ars Technica
Randahl Fink
Heidi Li Feldman