Like Marriages, Wars are Easier to Get Into Than Out Of

I think General McChrystal has presented the most thorough and insightful analysis of Trump's Iranian fiasco of any out there. It is well worth your time to read https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/23/opinion/trump-iran-general-mcchrystal.html?smid=nytcore-android-share (if you hit a paywall, pay - this article is worth it!).

There are two reasons that Trump can't simply declare victory and go home: Iran and Israel. Iran is fighting an asymmetrical war; this is not WWI trenches or WWII tank battles. This can range from drone strikes to computer hacking to terrorist attacks and who knows what else.  Israel will do what Israel wants to do. Period. Neither Iran nor Israel is on Trump's timetable. 

                

There is a long history of distrust between the West and Iran, not just 1979 but 1953 and 1941. You might also listen the the four-part series from The Rest is History podcast about the fall of the Shah and the Iranian Revolution. https://therestishistory.com/episodes/fall-of-the-shah-part-1

Other thoughts ----

Cutting the head off  the hydra is poor strategy. Every time an Iranian leader is killed, a new one (or two) turns up. This is not Venezuela with a traditional central government.

Pete Hegseth talks about "silly rules of engagement". Throwing out rules is a two-edged sword and a very dangerous one in the Middle East. 

Trump's standard operating procedure of erratic behavior then moving on to the next reckless, ill-conceived project may be stuck in a real quagmire this time. Iran also is not Greenland.  Sadly, the global economy is impacted, and that means people and nations with less resource than the US are going to truly suffer, not just be inconvenienced.