Let's see if Iran can keep up.
Posted on 07/25/2026 1:44:14 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
ISTANBUL—The conflict between the U.S. and Iran is escalating just as the two warring parties are running up against the limits of what they can achieve through military force.
The conflict widened this week after Iranian-allied militants in Yemen began striking ships transiting a key Red Sea chokepoint, helping drive oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time in two months on Thursday.
The U.S., meanwhile, has escalated its bombing campaign in Iran in recent days, striking throughout the country during the most intense period of fighting since President Trump and Israel began bombing Iran in late February.
Trump and other administration leaders have threatened to ratchet up the military campaign against Iran, including by striking a suspected Iranian nuclear facility at Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain or by attacking Iran’s national infrastructure such as power plants in response to Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
“The price will continue to get higher every single night until they come to their senses,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Thursday at a summit in Manila, citing Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s description of Tehran’s approach as “an eye for an eye.”
“The president’s policy is a head for an eye,” Rubio said. “I mean, honestly, that is what it is going to be.” He added that Trump would decide whether to escalate in the coming days.
The challenge facing Washington and Tehran is that both governments have shown a willingness to escalate, but neither is capable of achieving a decisive advantage over the other. The stalemate heightens the risk that the U.S. and Iran could be drawn into further months of war as both sides attempt to generate leverage, military analysts say.
“There is an escalatory dynamic now,” said Alan Eyre, a former...
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
The Wall Street Journal is owned by Rupert Murdoch who has a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. Just saying.
Can you refute the content of the article?
Just asking.
Let's see if Iran can keep up.
If we lose the midterms, so be it. Iran must be deprived of the ability to make nukes.
Great catch. The same “cycle of military escalation” we’ve been in with the ragheads for the past 47 years. We’re the Great Satan guy.
I can just see you with your eyes closed and your fingers in your ears screaming "I don't care."
We are on the escalation ladder predicted by the Pentagon. The Pentagon told Trump the Mullahs would not fall for years and it would destroy the world economy.
Iran has had nukes for decades, just like Israel, and just like we pretend Israel doesn't have them, we pretend Iran doesn't have them.
What Iran doesn't have his a delivery system, but Russia or China might be willing to help them out with that if things keep going the way they are.
Can’t read the article because it’s a pay to read site.
The WSJ is a hardcore interventionist & internationalist wrag that loves to cajole public opinion in those directions.
Then, when the going gets tough, they switch to a more neutral or skeptical position.
I agree. i think the difficulty of this fight is unfortunate. But it’s been almost 50 years of religious fanatics yelling “Death to America!” and they clearly want a nuke. And they would clearly use it as soon as they had it. They are fanatics. We have no choice — we need to stop them. Which is exactly what Trump is trying to do. I really don’t understand any pro-Americans getting upset and trying to leave this effort half-finished. I see that as a deathwish on our side.
Go to the top of my homepage and follow the instructions: https://freerepublic.com/~epluribusunum/index
“Iran has had nukes for decades, “
How do you know?
Sad. I remember years ago reading the print edition,as soon as it arrived. Great paper. Days gone by. Long gone...
Actually, unless you think both sides are justified, it should be one side "escalates" and one side responds.
The title and the entire article doesn't see it that way.
No surprise from the WSJ.
Don’t care. We would be insane to let those religious fanatics have a nuke. We either fight World War III here and now while it’s cheaper, or we fight it later when the costs are too horrible to contemplate.
If we lose the midterms, so be it. Iran must be deprived of the ability to make nukes.
********************
WW3 will eventually happen, but not at this time.
What’s going to happen is Republicans will lose in the midterm elections. Then 24/7 investigations and impeachment attempts will be launched.
While this is happening for over two years, two wars will be ended, one in Europe & one in the Middle East.
No official government or recognized authority publicly states that Iran has had nuclear weapons for decades.
Trump should keep quiet. He told the world Iran has no army, navy, or air force left but here we are, still under threat. Stop with the we’ll blow you up, they want a deal, cease fire, bigger stuff coming, I’ll think about even bigger bombs. Just stop. Do the job quietly and effectively.
How do you negotiate with a “twelver islamic suicide cult”? You can let them kill you or you can try to kill them.
Quit huh?
DO IT!
Then, when the going gets tough, they switch to a more neutral or skeptical position.
It has always been this way with the neocons. They all swore Dubya was a strategic genius for swallowing their lies and invadign Iraq.
When it all started going south, they started revealing their "misgivings about how the war was being prosecuted."
What is Iran escalating? Sling shots? Maybe bows and arrows. With inflation at 200 what can they buy? I will gladly give you barrels of oil tomorrow for bomber today.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.