Ep. 79: Words Shmerds
Hey FRs,
When did the word ceasefire become a funhouse mirror that completely distorts the reality of a situation?
Let's see...I doubt it started with the October 2025 "ceasefire" between Israel and Gaza, after which bombs continued (and continue) to fall, killing over 700 Palestinians to-date. Or with any of the "ceasefires" between the Central African Republic and various rebel groups. And certainly not with the "ceasefire" currently being hammered out between Afghanistan and Pakistan while shelling continues. And these are just the recent ones I could think of off the top of my head.
I know words continue to become more and more amorphous, especially when used in a political context– "Regime Change" is just the new "Mission Accomplished,"
but the fact that Israel seemingly unilaterally decided they were exempt and rained bombs on Lebanon mere hours after the "ceasefire" took effect is bonkers. On this week's show we did our best to cover all the bonkers-ness of the situation. Seena even got out a whiteboard(!) to help explain how much Iran is set to gain should the present terms hold. If you haven't watched yet, please do. The world is a f***ing shitshow right now, might as well at least try to laugh with us.
Seena's Corner - An update on how I feel about the war:
FUCK.
WTF.
I never wanted this war. But when it started, I thought, “ok” if this is going to happen then they need to really do it. Go in there and get rid of the whole regime. This is naive, but it’s how I felt.
My worst fear was that Trump would get bored, or the news would change, and he would make a deal for oil or some other resource, call it a win and move on. Leaving the regime in place, and the Iranian people to suffer more. The worst fear is now here.
ALL THAT BEING SAID… I want to be clear that what I want is not good foreign policy or good for my fellow Americans. This is the conflicted place I find myself these days. Good foreign policy would be to get the fuck out of there because we’ve already given them everything they could possibly have wanted: outright control of the Strait, lifted sanctions, the world LIKES THEM, and we lost blood and treasure.
I see on the news anchors or hosts will often say “well I’ve talked to Iranian-Americans and this is what they want.” And I think this muddies the waters when it comes to the discourse. My trauma, my family’s trauma, should not be the foundation of a political project in Iran. The blood thirst that so many have, cannot be how we conduct foreign policy.
Again, I hate being in this place. I hate that the thing I want most in the world runs completely counter to the safety and prosperity of everyone in the US.
Over the coming weeks, we will discuss another way we can approach fighting back against the Islamic Republic, one that I hope gains traction.
Meanwhile in Ohio: What Travis is Reading ––
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
This week on TFR in the "JD Vance Corner" we covered JD's big "campaign trip" to support Hungarian President Viktor Orban's re-election, but did the campaign trip actually work? Apparently not –– according to Newsweek, the betting odds on Orban winning re-election actually got WORSE after JD's trip, which means JD's chances of being the heir of the MAGA movement in 2028 probably just got WORSE as well! Or to say the least, we won't bet on it.
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