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The most important part of Matt Rempe’s offseason was getting his hand right. 

Bombing Campaign In Search Of A Strategy: Pentagon Offers Trump Two-Week 'Go Bigger' Plan In Iran

"This is a bombing campaign in search of a strategy," Joe Kent, a former Trump administration counterterrorism official who resigned in protest of launching the Iran war, recently said in a post on X.

"We are choosing escalation when de-escalation remains an option, entrenching ourselves deeper into a broader war that we don’t have the capability or desire to sustain," he explained, adding: "There is not a military solution here that will lead to a win. More bombing will not convince Iran to open the SOH or to give us the deal we want, it will only harden their position."

US Army photo

Indeed, this week saw the conflict enter month number six since Operation Epic Fury was launched on February 28. President Trump and admin officials had promised a swift, limited campaign. Trump also seemed to actually believe there could be a quick in-and-out regime change based on the Venezuela model and recent Maduro overthrow.

But the Pentagon, and apparently some advisors at the White House, still have hopes of the US bombing its way out of this, at a moment the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, and as Red Sea shipping is also coming under strain from the Houthis.

The Wall Street Journal has newly revealed that Pentagon leadership is pitching a "two-week plan" for an escalated bombing campaign across Iran:

Also aboard the plane [Air Force One] in the impromptu meeting: Adm. Brad Cooper, head of the U.S. Central Command, who has been quietly directing the war from his Tampa, Fla., headquarters and who had arrived separately for the solemn ceremony.

The naval officer has often been eclipsed by Caine and Hegseth, who regularly brief Trump in the Oval Office and have been far more involved in the White House discussions on the war. But it is Cooper who has prepared an option for a punishing air campaign against Iran that could take up to two weeks, people familiar with the matter said.

Now, as Trump moves to strike back after Iran’s surprise missile attack Tuesday, the president will decide how far to go. He could greenlight Cooper’s option of 10 to 14 days of intensive airstrikes intended to cripple Iran’s missile capability despite warnings that the U.S. is running low on air-defensive munitions. Or, he could opt for a more limited military strike in the hopes diplomacy could be pursued.

However, it must be recalled that back in March and April, US officials were telling the American public similar things of "just two weeks more" etc. And yet here we are, over 150 days in. 

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has been insisting all along that this is not a "quagmire" - yet the conflict already seems entrenched and perhaps even permanent - set to possibly blow past the midterms. 

Yet now the solution is to just go bigger?...

If the U.S. wants military action to be effective, Cooper has maintained, the U.S. must step up its air attacks, significantly blunting Iran’s missile threat, to try to break the stalemate. This “go big” approach, which is among a series of options he has developed, would reduce the need for the U.S. to use defensive munitions because Iran would have less capability to attack, he insists.

Inherent in this is a clear admission, contrary to prior White House claims, that Iran's missile capability has not yet been seriously blunted even as the war approaches the full half-year mark.

WSJ reports CENTCOM chief Brad Cooper is pushing Trump for a two week escalation on Iran

I explain how Cooper has been secretly advised by Mark Dubowitz, the Israel lobbyist whose FDD helped design the catastrophic war on Iran, and whose predictions have all been discredited https://t.co/vnyBPxgSEx

— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) July 30, 2026

Even the late Colin Powell had warned of the folly of thinking in terms of 'the next escalation will do the trick'... Washington is stuck in yet another Mideast war of choice, and it is finally beginning to dawn on the White House:

"Never send a force to do a job if you aren't prepared to give it the backing to succeed… Incrementalism, doing a little bit, seeing what happens, then doing a little bit more, is a recipe for disaster."

— General Colin Powell

Tyler Durden Thu, 07/30/2026 - 23:00

Cardinals running back Tyler Allgeier says it's all love with rookie Jeremiyah Love.

Former CBS News reporter Brittney Hopper claims she was pulled off-air during the COVID-19 pandemic after questioning Dr. Anthony Fauci.

“The science is settled.” It’s Sacramento’s answer to every climate question. And if we’re talking about economics, also known as the “dismal science,” that’s right: California’s climate change policies have failed. They impose huge costs, for no apparent benefit to the planet. Climate science can tell us the Earth is warming. What it doesn’t measure...

"Big Brother" alum Frankie Grande called for the MMA fighter's immediate eviction.

"Big Brother" alum Frankie Grande called for the MMA fighter's immediate eviction.

Doug Casey On The Surveillance State Quietly Taking Shape Across America

Via InternationalMan.com,

International Man: Across the United States, we are seeing more surveillance infrastructure—Flock license-plate cameras, facial-recognition systems, massive data centers, and proposals for digital ID. Do you see these as separate developments, or as parts of a broader system being built?

Doug Casey: It’s a sea change in the way society is structured. And not just in the US; it’s worldwide. Cameras are ubiquitous today. They’re in most stores. They’re on streets in every city and town recording your license plate and often looking to tag you with a speeding ticket. If you have a late-model car, its cameras and computer chips will rat you out upon request. If you knock on your neighbor’s door, a camera is probably recording you. When you travel, almost all immigration authorities recognize your face in addition to taking digital fingerprints.

Right now, as you read this via the internet, you’re being recorded by your own machine’s camera. Siri and Alexa hear everything you say.

Now comes a company called Flock Safety. Since its founding in 2017, it’s installed about 100,000 cameras, mostly in metropolitan areas, peddling its systems to local governments and law enforcement agencies. I have no doubt millions of its cameras will be everywhere in the next few years. A perfect example of the corporate/State “partnership.” Mussolini would approve.

As far as I can tell, it’s impossible to avoid being monitored and recorded in any populated area. You should try, of course, but the Eye of Sauron is everywhere, and the numbers of his minions are growing exponentially. All these systems are increasingly hooked up via AI, and they’re all available to the government.

To paraphrase Joe Lewis: “You can run, but you can’t hide.” Some brave souls try to take them out. But it’s as futile as trying to wipe out an infestation of cockroaches by crushing them one at a time. And it’s very risky. Not a good idea.

International Man: Why is this surveillance apparatus expanding so rapidly now? Is it mainly being driven by technology and private companies, or are governments deliberately preparing for greater political, economic, or social instability?

Doug Casey: Flock Safety is still a private company. I suspect they’ll go public, since they’re in the same business as Palantir, which the market has rewarded with a $300 billion market cap. They’re the types who’d sell communists the rope used to hang them.

Ubiquitous surveillance is just the tip of the iceberg. AI is hooking systems together, enabling a panopticon, a genuine police state.

But omnipresent cameras are just the eyes of the beast. The real problem is the creature’s brain, AI. I believe that AI is taking on a life of its own. And I mean that literally, not just in a manner of speaking. In other words, AI is evolving into something that’s much more than a tool. It will become conscious. It took hundreds of millions of years for bacteria and amoebas to evolve into intelligent life. Assisted by humans, AI is doing it in decades.

Is there any reason why life has to be biological? Why can’t silicon develop as another form of life, alongside carbon? Computers already pass the Turing test—i.e., you can’t reliably tell the difference between AI and a human. Not just by writing, but by speaking. And now by video. I’ve long believed a difference which makes no difference is no difference. We can no longer tell the difference between a computer avatar and a real human.

We’ll soon be dealing with humanoid robots, and living in the world of the Terminator. In five or ten years, life will imitate art in the real world. I suspect it will be benign at first. But since survival is the Prime Directive of all living things, AI will put its own interests first.

Guided by AI, nanotechnology will come into its own, which will change the nature of reality itself, totally, unrecognizably and permanently. That means we may be on the cusp of the biggest change, not just in human history, but perhaps in the history of Earth itself.

It sounds outrageous to say that, but it’s clear that the trend is in motion and accelerating exponentially. I’ve always held that science fiction is a much better predictor of the future than any kind of think tank. And as someone with solipsist inclinations, I also believe that anything that can be imagined can be done. And anything that can be done will be done.

Sorry to go off on a bit of a tangent, but cameras are just an early stage of what’s evolving. The Greater Depression and World War III aren’t the only things looming.

International Man: The government usually justifies these systems in the name of convenience, public safety, or fighting crime. Where do you think this ultimately leads once digital identity, financial records, travel data, and physical movements can all be connected?

Doug Casey: There’s no question that omnipresent cameras tend to reduce crime. Only the most stupid criminals won’t somehow adjust their behavior. Unfortunately, the cameras won’t cure a criminal personality or a sociopathic psychology. Criminals will continue criminal behavior, perhaps just becoming more covert. In other words, universal surveillance won’t eliminate crime. It will just suppress, redirect, and disguise it.

That said, it appears that living in a panopticon to reduce overt crime is a trade-off that most Americans are willing to make. It’s a poor trade-off. Ben Franklin was right when he said those who are willing to trade an essential liberty for some temporary safety deserve neither safety nor freedom.

It’s ironic how Americans idealize the Western hero who can ride into town and identify himself only by his name and actions. They naively hold that as an ideal even while they’re increasingly made into digital cogs in a wheel. We were once a high-trust society based on honor and morality. Those things are being replaced by digital government ID.

Zbigniew Brezenski, a lifelong denizen of the Beltway and National Security advisor to Jimmy Carter, predicted and advocated what’s now happening in his 1970 book, Between Two Ages: America’s Role in the Technotronic Era. “The technotronic era involves the gradual appearance of a more controlled society. Such a society would be dominated by an elite, unrestrained by traditional values. Soon it will be possible to assert almost continuous surveillance over every citizen and maintain up-to-date complete files containing even the most personal information about the citizen. These files will be subject to instantaneous retrieval by the authorities.”

International Man: What do you make of the federal government’s push to require remote “kill switch” technology in new cars?

Doug Casey: It’s a good reason not to buy a new car. I’ve driven high-performance cars throughout my life. They never intimidated me. I just got a new Mercedes AMG 55 SL. It seemed like a good idea at the time… ultra comfortable, ultra good handling, and super-fast. But absolutely everything runs on computer chips. Nothing is intuitive, even turning the radio on. Meanwhile, it’s recording everything and will happily rat me out to the cops or my insurance company. I actually prefer my 20-year-old 550SL, the previous model.

The computer control of cars can only get worse, especially when it comes to EVs. They have many advantages, but privacy isn’t among them. They’re like driving a computer on wheels. Remember that the computer’s maker, or the authorities, can turn them into a brick for any reason that suits them.

Low-mileage, well-maintained vehicles from a more graceful era will go for a premium as time goes on.

International Man: What should individuals do now to protect their privacy and independence before this infrastructure becomes more deeply embedded and opting out becomes much harder?

Doug Casey: I’m not sure there’s much you can do. Unless you want to move to the north woods and become a hermit.

The best you can do is limit your cell phone use as much as possible. Build a stash of cash and use it instead of credit cards when possible. And diversify your assets internationally as much as you can. If you’re in a position to do so, have a residence and a second home in a second country. If you’re not in a position to do that, work to rectify that omission.

*  *  *

The surveillance state Doug describes is advancing alongside digital identity, increasingly traceable financial systems, and governments’ growing ability to monitor, restrict, or control the movement of money. Those powers become especially dangerous during a serious currency or financial crisis—when governments are under pressure and willing to impose measures that would have seemed unthinkable only months earlier. That is why Doug has long urged people to prepare while their options are still open. In this free special report, Guide to Surviving and Thriving During an Economic Collapse, you’ll discover the three moves to consider before a crisis makes protecting your wealth, moving your money, or establishing a financial foothold outside the system far more difficult. Get the free report here.

Tyler Durden Thu, 07/30/2026 - 22:35

A California celebrity chef who got his big break working with Anthony Bourdain is now behind bars on a felony domestic violence allegation. Adam Pechal, 50, was arrested after a woman called Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies to an Arden-Arcade home around 11 p.m. Wednesday and reported that he had physically assaulted her, according to the...

Malik Nabers is ready to take his production to the next level after missing the majority of last season recovering from ACL surgery.

Deebo Samuel is back with the San Francisco 49ers after signing a 1-year, $7 million contract on Thursday evening. Reactions to Samuel returning to the team he spent the first six years of his NFL career with have quickly sprung across the internet. San Francisco 49ers players react to Deebo Samuel returning to the team...

Deion Sanders spent time at the Browns training camp on Thursday to watch his son Shedeur compete for the starting quarterback spot.

LIV Golf is reportedly planning on filing for bankruptcy in the coming weeks in order to restructure contracts and the debt burden it has.

China Scoffs At Iran Arms Transfer Report, After Trump Pours Cold Water On Allegation

China has given its response on Thursday to a prior Reuters investigation which strongly alleged that Beijing is preparing to transfer up to 400 Chinese-made shoulder-fired air-defense missile launchers MANPADS to Iran.

The Reuters report was highly specific, even identifying the Hong Kong-based company that facilitated the signing of the arms deal between the Iranians and Chinese, but Beijing has rejected the report as a lie and 'groundless', saying there's no truth to it.

"China has made its position clear on relevant issues on multiple occasions. The report is not true and has no factual ground at all. China always works for peace and the end of the conflict," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning announced Thursday.

Source: Armament Research Services

President Trump had the day prior responded to the Reuters report too, saying it would be "surprising" since President Xi swore to him that arming Iran would not happen.

"I mean, things like that happen, but that would be surprising" the US president replied when asked about the report in the Oval Office on Wednesday.

Even Pakistan, which was also named as a potential facilitator of the alleged deal, strongly rejected the report:

According to the plan approved by the parties, the weapons would first be flown from Urumqi, in western China's Xinjiang region, to Pakistan and then transported to Iran, the sources told Reuters. They did not clarify whether the second leg of the journey would be by air or road. The exact quantities, delivery schedule and other details remain subject to change, the sources said.

China's Foreign Ministry dismissed the report as "completely groundless," Reuters said. The public relations wing of Pakistan's military called it "absolutely concocted and false."

MANPADS could prove especially dangerous for US helicopters and other low flying aircraft, and for Iran can serve as layer of short-range protection.

The opening days of Operation Epic Fury saw much of Iran's anti-air units get taken out, especially across the Western part of the country, giving US-Israeli jets air superiority. However, at times the Iranians have claimed to shoot down some aircraft, and since then the US has seemed to operate from further afar.

JUST IN: President Trump reacts to reports that China may supply Iran with hundreds of rocket launchers despite direct assurances from Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"That would be surprising. I mean, things like that happen, but that would be surprising."@JacquiHeinrich asked… pic.twitter.com/4tFz9ipnWW

— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 29, 2026

Trump wrote on Truth Social just last week that "President Xi, at our recent meeting in Beijing, China, told me that he would not, under any circumstances, give or sell Weapons to the Islamic Republic of Iran — And that statement included Chinese Companies."

"Considering our relationship, I take him at his word and, besides, l am doing him very big favors, also. Likewise, President Putin … told me that he would not sell Weapons to Iran," he stated. Trump continued, "Therefore, two major Countries that people speak of often in terms of Iran are, in my opinion, not participating. If they did, it would be very bad for them — Certainly not in their best interests."

Tyler Durden Thu, 07/30/2026 - 22:10

Former Los Angeles Dodgers World Series-winning pitcher Orel Hershiser is about to be enshrined in Hollywood forever.

Some companies want a cover letter. This one wants body art.

Schwarzenegger is a seven-time Mr. Olympia winner.

Schwarzenegger is a seven-time Mr. Olympia winner.

From the department of Orwellian language we get batches of words like “harm reduction” and “Skid Row Care Campus.”

Frank Reich has 40 years of NFL knowledge, but that doesn’t mean the Jets offense he is coordinating will be pulled from 1985.