The Blowback Doctrine

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When foreign policy turns to decapitation strikes, rogue regimes call family targets fair game.

Tehran broadcasting animated hit pieces and bounties against an American president’s child is grotesque theater, but it exposes the inevitable cost of abandoning foundational norms.

For decades, American foreign policy strictly prohibited the targeted assassination of foreign leaders. The doctrine was not born out of sympathy for autocrats; it was anchored in cold, self-preserving pragmatism. Once a state legitimizes decapitation strikes as standard statecraft, the unwritten firewall collapses.

Opening Pandora’s box always looks decisive in the war room until the blowback begins.

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136 thoughts on “The Blowback Doctrine”


  2. Jul 5, 2020 Written and performed by Don Caron | Executive producer: Sally Headley
    Came across a Wiki about a guy named Carlo M. Cipolla who developed a list that he called The Fundamental Laws of Stupidity. He died it 2000 at the age of 78 but his theory has recently taken on new meaning.

  5. It’s runoff day in South Carolina’s GOP Senate primary on who succeeds the late Sen. Lindsey Graham: his sister, Sen. Darline Graham, or Rep. Ralph Norman. Winner runs against Dr. Annie Anderson.

  9. I think the real question is, did they have real information about Barron Trumps location or was it made up BS to create fear and terror. They are real experts on terror. If they had real inside information then Iran’s spy network is very active. We will never know because nobody is going to admit a screwup in security of that level.
    To know if the threat is real watch Trump for the next few days. He will give you a tell to what his worries are.

    Jack

  10. Pogo
    I think it was a good interview for him, I didn’t watch all of it but he did ok. It is not like it was something that will make any difference locally and he needed the practice. One thing he needs to do is slow down. Don’t try to get all your points made in one sentence.

    Jack

  12. Silicon Tomato Reviews The News
    GOOD MORNING TRAILMIXERS☕
    • Over 440,000 Florida residents dropped their Affordable Care Act plans this year, leaving gig workers and small business owners to shoulder skyrocketing medical costs. The regime successfully liberated half a million people from the tyranny of subsidized premiums, trusting the free market to magically set broken bones for pennies. – AP News

    • The current occupant of the White House has threatened to rename Lake Ontario to “Lake America” as a retaliatory tactic during an escalating tariff and trade dispute with the Canadian government. Nothing asserts global economic dominance quite like threatening to unilaterally rebrand a body of water that you only own half of. – The Washington Post

    • Kiribati maritime police detained a Chinese commercial vessel operating in the Pacific Ocean after an inspection revealed an illegal haul of harvested shark fins onboard. International maritime law continues its brave fight against syndicates dedicated to the vital economic mission of mutilating apex predators for soup. – CBS News
    — Human Prompted and Edited. Machine Drafted. (Gemini Pro)

  13. Iranian State TV Barron Trump Threat Controversy Explained

    The Jerusalem Post reported that one supposed associate identified in the Iranian segment appeared to be a fabricated profile, undermining the presentation of the program’s information as reliable intelligence.

    The program alleged that a woman had managed to get through security, meet privately with Barron and provide information to the program’s creators. Euronews said it could not independently verify the claim.

    Euronews and other outlets said they could not independently verify that an actual bounty had been formally established.

    The Video Used Highly Stylized Imagery Rather Than Providing Evidence Of An Actual Operation. Iran International reported that the program relied heavily on dramatized graphics depicting surveillance and efforts to penetrate Barron’s protection but did not offer evidence that anyone working for Iran had successfully reached him.

    *It would be incredibly stupid for Iran to air this. I mean, it’s so stupid that it’s like something the US would’ve done.

  14. https://people.com/melania-and-barron-trump-targeted-for-assassination-in-iran-linked-video-12030305

    July 29, 2026 PEOPLE Magazine!

    From the previous link:
    The Barron Broadcast Followed An Earlier Iranian Video Targeting Melania Trump. In July, the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency distributed a video focused on First Lady Melania Trump that purported to detail places she visited and vulnerabilities in her protective arrangements. The Secret Service said it was investigating that material as well. [PEOPLE]

  17. They’re rounding up horses for slaughter on OUR public lands, so Dumbass gets us the toxic, Argentinian beef that China rejected.

    BiBi won’t let Dumbass off of the hook, so he picks a fight with Canada.
    Canada threatens to cut off power electricity and gas/oil.
    So, the SS just happens to let it slip that there’s been a transmission from Iran…but apparently, there was no big stink about it in July, for the previous transmission which was reported in PEOPLE magazine!

  20. Yeah, Craig, that is kinda the purpose of terror. make the threat and let your imagination do the rest.

    As to assassination rules, It is part of the whole “gentleman’s war” thing where the gentlemen lead from the rear and don’t die. That is what the grunts do. Gentlemen write sad patriotic letters to their grieving family.
    Come to think of it assassination has always been something we abhor when done to us but can always find excuses when we do it.
    Maybe it is just another “speaking the quiet things out loud”
    Just wandering thoughts.
    Jack

  21. MS Now can now be subscribed for live watch on line for your computer $8 + tax. Unlike CNN which is available through Amazon, it’s still not available on TV unless you have a streaming service.

  23. Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
    Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
    Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs,
    And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
    Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots,
    But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
    Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
    Of gas-shells dropping softly behind.

    Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!—An ecstasy of fumbling
    Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time,
    But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
    And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime.—
    Dim through the misty panes and thick green light,
    As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

    In all my dreams before my helpless sight,
    He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

    If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace
    Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
    And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
    His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;
    If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
    Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
    Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
    Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,—
    My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
    To children ardent for some desperate glory,
    The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
    Pro patria mori.

  24. On that last Waters/ Dr. Abdul clip about Sharia Law: The thing that our capitalist government has with it is that they don’t allow interest to be charged. Republicans are fine with building their White Sharia nation where they take away women’s rights, unlike most of Muslim law. But, as Dr. Abdul El Sayed said, talking about making laws is a dog whistle to racists and Christo-fascists.

    Jesse Waters’ smirk reminds me of The Church Lady on SNL.

  25. Broadway’s “Here Lies Love” (the Imelda Marcos musical, which turned out to be a cautionary tale for right now)

    Vote blue!
    …if they let you!

    IMG_1615

  26. Today in the Diner…
    Barron Trump Iran Threat & ICE Arrests

    Iran targets Barron Trump with a $10 million bounty video while South Carolina voters decide between Dr. Annie Andrews and Darlene Graham.

    We start today with some genuinely spooky foreign policy news. Iran state television aired a propaganda video offering a bounty on Barron Trump, complete with footage of the NYC Annex. It is a bizarre distraction tactic hitting the Secret Service radar just as tariffs and trade wars heat up.

    Meanwhile in domestic politics, South Carolina voters are hitting the polls for a runoff between Dr. Annie Andrews and Darlene Graham. Sean Hannity is doing his best to defend Graham regarding Taiwan, but it might not be enough to stop a pediatrician from heading to the Senate. Up north in Maine, Senator Susan Collins is suddenly already scheduled to avoid appearing with JD Vance during his campaign swing.

    We also dive into Texas Governor Greg Abbott panicking over water rights for data centers, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller calling him out, and the ongoing power restoration efforts by Mayor Eddie Melton in Gary Indiana. Plus, Abdul takes on Jesse Watters over Sharia Law and Tommy Tuberville on Fox News.

    Live Chat: https://trailmix.cc/chat
    Website: https://trailmix.cc
    Alerts: https://trailmix.cc/alerts

    00:00 Intro
    00:12 Barron Trump Iran Bounty
    12:07 Casey Musgraves Chicago Concert
    15:10 ICE Arrests Maryland Virginia
    18:03 Spider-Man vs Jake Lang
    23:56 Greg Abbott Texas Water
    26:01 Darlene Graham Annie Andrews
    39:48 Gary Indiana Eddie Melton
    56:36 Susan Collins Maine JD Vance
    01:03:13 Abdul Jesse Watters Fox News
    — Human directed and edited. Machine drafted (Gemini Pro).

  27. “Meanwhile in domestic politics, South Carolina voters are hitting the polls for a runoff between Dr. Annie Andrews and Darlene Graham“

    hooray ai fuck-up 🥳

  29. y’all are smoking something if you think Andrews will win in SC

    they’ll hit her hard with that 3rd rail, she doesn’t have a cogent retort to it

  31. https://www.foxnews.com/media/country-singer-kacey-musgraves-turns-concert-into-plea-kids-whose-parents-were-deported-unfairly

    Eight-time Grammy award-winning country singer Kacey Musgraves paused the opening night of her “Middle of Nowhere” tour on Friday at Chicago’s United Center to ask fans to donate to the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights as her birthday wish, saying the nonprofit helped children whose parents had been deported “unfairly.”

    “It’s a wonderful organization, and they help give aid — legal aid — and money to children whose parents have been deported unfairly,” Musgraves said. “It’s not a political thing. It’s just, these kids need help.”

    The Chicago-based Young Center describes its work as pairing volunteers with attorneys and social workers to advocate for unaccompanied and separated immigrant children in government custody. Its website lists family unity, release from custody, fair proceedings and children’s best interests among its priorities.

    Musgraves also invited three brothers, ages 18, 14 and 12, to open three Texas shows in May after their family was released from ICE custody. The mariachi performers’ family said they entered through the now-defunct CBP One appointment system in 2023 and sought asylum after fleeing violence in Mexico, KSAT reported.

    Musgraves’ latest remarks came as ICE enforcement reached record levels. Federal sources told Fox News Digital that agents made about 51,000 immigration arrests in July, topping the previous record of roughly 43,000 in June.

    *Where are they? Deported? In a for-profit prison paid for with our taxes? Where is their personal property? Are there empty apartments and houses on the market? Are prices coming down? Whose stolen job is now ready and waiting for whatever MAGAt thought it was rightfully theirs?

  34. an iranian threat allegedly started all
    of this so it doesn’t matter

    we gonna allow idiot to start wwiv over personal anxieties or vengeance

    seems likely

  36. Craig – Not sure why, but I’m having issues posting from YouTube. It looks posted, then disappears, but if I try to post it again it gives me the “duplicate” messages. Not a big deal for me, but wanted you to know in case others have issues.

  38. Yes, thanks BiD. I always want to know about glitches, so that I can investigate. One thing to clarify: YouTube links have to be in a separate line to pull up the preview card

  40. I’ve been doing it the same way as usual, but today it’s an issue. Maybe YouTube is requiring you have an account to share now, in which case, I won’t be sharing anything from their platform.

  42. Winterlinde – There are many German settlements in Texas. Fredericksburg, New Braunfels, Muenster, and Luckenbach come to mind.

    I wasn’t sure about Lubbock, so I checked Wikipedia: “It was named after Thomas Saltus Lubbock, former Texas Ranger and brother of Francis Lubbock, governor of Texas during the Civil War.” (Maybe their family was originally from Germany, but I’m not sure.) Basically, it was named for a slave catcher (Ranger) who was the brother of a slave holder.

  45. https://www.indy100.com/viral/trump-supporter-us-great-britain

    *Scroll waaay down to see the video on X; I laughed so hard…but these folks vote.

    Attending a Trump rally at Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, Jason Selvig of The Good Liars YouTube channel went to interview attendees. He asked one lady what she thought Donald Trump’s great accomplishment has been:

    “Trump’s done a lot of things. Number one, a lot of people don’t realise, he got our country back because we’ve been under the reign of Great Britain the last 125 years, they destroyed the evidence.”

    She continued: “That’s why King Charles come here, he thought he was going to manipulate Donald Trump. And Trump went along with him because that’s who he is. But that’s what the 250 years was really about was we got our country back … You’re just going to have to research just like I did. You’re going to have to. It’s true.”

    Despite the existence of the 1783 Treaty of Paris, when Britain officially relinquished claim to 13 colonies in America, it seems some people think Britain has had control of the US long afterward.

  47. The entire post is gone. I typed Ok and then speed down a line and added the link – but I don’t even see my text “Ok.”

  48. I am, indeed, smoking something.

    Still:
    Dr Annie has a reall chance of taking SC. It’s like a hundred year flood or something in sc right now. and we’ll see how tough she can be, but I predict she has a firm chance.
    I remember sc presidential primary a lot of the sc Coastline turned out for Haley. It’s much worse for the gop now and the Humans are on the rise in sc.

    The great thing is how soon we’ll know.

    And…nobody’s saying it but I think the governor, McMassah, really really stepped on his crank (navy term) by appointing Sister Girl to the office, and then backing her run in Nov.

  53. It is very rare to have someone’s death I have never met and befriended affect me. I just started my afternoon online time and scrolled in something and read she had died. A kick in the gut and a whole body sadness hit me. She has done so much for so many and now she has been stilled. A lovely lady, I learned of her in the deep no where in Mississippi back over fifty years now. She deserves a tear from all of us. And, a promise to help someone or group starting today.

  62. saw this just yesterday and wondered about the probable prescience on her part given today’s news

    Aug 24, 2026 #EntertainmentTonight
    Dolly Parton gives an update regarding her health. The 80-year-old star reveals she’s now exploring avatar performances as a result of ongoing health issues, which Dolly tells ‘People’ is still in early stages.

  65. Jamie, here’s herself on the library

    Here she is in 2018 at the Library of Congress explaining what inspired her to create the Imagination Library, which has now gifted more than 325 million books.

  66. RIP to Dolly & thanks for the Moderna donation. I think her donation not only helped move the cause forward, but gave some more confidence in it. I was relieved that I was able to get Moderna, but I would’ve taken the other if I could’ve accessed it earlier.

    The Monarch butterflies showed up this afternoon.

  69. Col. Gustavo Arellano
    @GustavoArellano
    So many Dolly songs to choose from, but my choice will ALWAYS be her cover of Woody Guthrie‘s “Deportee.” In an album dedicated to work, she made sure to respect the most despised sector of America’s economy at height of her popularity — THAT Is a legend

  70. Dolly just took her politics to the grave—and both sides could think she voted for them. She survived the American dumpster fire by refusing to feed it. Stop looking for her voting record and read this:

    Craigtrailmix | SUBSTACK
    DOLLY'S MYSTERIOUS POLITICS
    Read on Substack →

  75. I will repeat I do not want World War IV because the idiot king is worried about his family

    Impeach convict, depose, legally and peacefully immediately please

  77. When else have they remained silent & not vowed revenge?

    When they had something to do with it.

    When someone had komproment on Dumbass.

    When they’re a plotting and a planning.

  78. Anonymous – Don’t just tell us; call Representatives in Congress to impeach, and Senators to convict: 202-224-3121

  79. Here’s Kornacki’s set up map:
    upper left light-pink Greenville area is Norman’s congressional district. upper right dark red is Myrtle Beach where third-place finisher Fry is based (he endorsed Graham), and Trump rallied there over the weekend.

    Looks like midland Columbia counties will be the decider.

  82. One of Dolly’s kin, maybe her sister came out on Tweeter attempting to crank up a giant prayer campaign for Dolly who, upon seeing it immediately came out with a video which stopped the giant prayer attempt dead in its tracks. Dolly passed on her own terms like she’s done with everything she’s ever done.
    I’ve known Dolly since she replaced Little Miss Norma Jean on the Porter Waggoner TV show.
    That’s a long time.

  87. Hey, maybe dumbass thought up the Barron threat his own self….you know….to “keep her in line”.

  88. I’m not into country music… but I am into Dolly Parton.
    I loved her program of buying children’s books to distribute to children all over the world.

    Dolly Parton… RIP.

  90. Wonderful tribute to Dolly:

    Tomsnumberones | SUBSTACKDolly Parton Was Exactly Who SheRead on Substack →

    Contained in it is a lesson for all the billionaires

    The woman understood money. She understood fame. She clearly enjoyed both. But she also seemed to understand that once you have more than you could possibly need, you can do something with it besides build a bigger fence.

    And she did it without turning every act of generosity into a lecture.

    Even this year, when Dolly turned 80, she went back to her 1977 song “Light of a Clear Blue Morning” and recorded a new version with Miley Cyrus, Reba McEntire, Lainey Wilson and Queen Latifah. The proceeds went to pediatric cancer research.

    Of course they did.

  93. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/tech-news/elon-musks-starbase-to-get-two-new-monuments-with-very-different-messages/articleshow/133232993.cms

    Elon Musk’s Starbase to get two new monuments with very different messages

    *Look at that; a literal poser. Not a scientist and not a genius, but he seems to be stark-raving mad and evil. Big ego. Ketamine (by his own admission).

    Elon Musk’s Starbase in Texas is getting two very different monuments. While one group is building a 50-foot statue inspired by the Greek titan Prometheus to celebrate SpaceX’s achievements, another is raising money for a monument aimed at mocking the billionaire.

    One of the monuments being installed is backed by a French art group that says “SpaceX makes humanity dream,” while the other comes from the makers of the popular card game Cards Against Humanity, which has an ongoing dispute linked to land near Starbase.

    French foundry group Atelier Missor recently shared images of a large monument it is building near Starbase. According to the group, the 50-foot statue depicts Prometheus, the Greek titan who, according to mythology, stole fire from Zeus and gave it to humanity. The group said last year that it wanted to offer the statue to Starbase because “SpaceX makes humanity dream.”
    It is not known whether Musk accepted the proposal. However, he has interacted with Atelier Missor’s posts on X (formerly Twitter) in the past and praised some of the group’s artwork.

    *Who is paying for it?

    Cards Against Humanity, the company behind the popular party card game, has launched a fundraising campaign to build a monument that it says is intended to “f—k with Elon Musk.”
    The company claims SpaceX’s activities around Starbase damaged a parcel of land it bought in 2017 to oppose the construction of a US-Mexico border wall. It later sued SpaceX over the property, with both sides reaching a confidential settlement in 2025.

    Explaining its latest campaign, a company spokesperson said the land that was once surrounded by open fields is now bordered by “a ‘town’ called ‘Starbase’ — corporate hellscape littered with broken rockets and ugly mansions for Musk’s s—t-eating executives.”

    The company said more than 12,000 people had joined the campaign by August 13, helping raise about $150,000. When asked what Musk represents to the company, the spokesperson replied: “the kind of humanity we’re actually against.”

  94. https://www.cardsagainsthumanity.com/elonhasnofriends

    Today, we’re announcing the Official Elon Musk is a Sad Little Bitch with No Friends Monument Design Committee. For just $10, you can join a movement of like-minded people working together to force a moment of introspection upon the world’s richest, ugliest little bitch.

    ***

    Nine years ago, 150,000 people paid Cards Against Humanity $15 to protect a pristine parcel of land on the US-Mexico border from racist billionaire Donald Trump’s stupid wall.

    Two years ago, we discovered that an even richer, more racist billionaire—Elon Musk—snuck up on us from behind and completely fucked that land with gravel, tractors, and space garbage.

    Last year, we took Musk’s ass to court. After battling his team of expensive, jizz-gargling lawyers, we eventually got him to admit on the record that his company did, in fact, fuck up our land. Which is illegal. Then he packed up his space garbage and left.

    That brings us to today. Our land is now surrounded by a “town” called “Starbase”—a corporate hellscape littered with broken rockets and ugly mansions for Musk’s shit-eating executives. What a tragic fate for our beautiful parcel, where wild horses once galloped freely in the Texas moonlight!

  111. Andrews doesn’t have that down home. I’m an idiot charm that will win the seat for Darlene

    No hard questions please for South Carolina

    Meritocracy!

  114. My former plywood, hardwood, and cabinet accessories wholesaler just sent me an email saying that they will be implementing a 9.5% tariff across the board. End of August.

    Thanks to their being “former”, I fart in their general direction, but there you have it: Who pays the tariff?

  117. Sturg – This entire administration has just been to see how much wealth they can transfer to the top.

    Looks like YouTube finally works for me.

  120. Don’t y’all get it? We’re making them spend money. They already had to scramble the president there for good ole “safe” South Carolina.Will probably have to again.

  121. well there are predictive markets now soooo

    oh, they have plenty of money to spend

    In fact, they have most of the money to spend

  122. Craig
    Can you get a message to Dr Andrews? Tell her people about SC cabinet supply wholesalers are slapping a 9.5% tariff on their cabinet supplies?

    That seems like something they should be made aware of,

  125. Anon, Dems are spreading them thin for Senate cash, from Alaska to Iowa, Maine and maybe even Nebraska, with grass roots candidates who can beat big money. They’re having to budget races they never thought necessary. Paxton is already bleeding out, and they learned not to count on Elon’s big promises.

  126. One word Pog: MEASLES

    More cases in SC under RFKjr than the last 20 years combined, other childhood diseases also rising, even polio. And the Dem nominee would be the first pediatrician ever in the Senate.

  131. Par Ticklers
    If she’s ever had any cabinets made, she knows they damn well cost enough without some idiot sticking on another 10%

  132. Wow. Ralph Norman just gave one of the most churlish, divisive concession speeches I’ve ever heard, mostly griped about about Trump’s heavy hand and no endorsement for Graham.

    “I hate this for our state”

    “Maybe some good will come from this. But I don’t know what it is”

    Craig Crawford's TrailMixTikTok VideoWatch on TikTok ➔

  133. Norman’s crowd had a real booing when he said stump’s name.
    In SC.
    I’m telling ya, appointing grahanm’s sister was a genuine solid state fuck-up.

  134. In concession speech, Norman says he ‘never understood’ why Trump got in SC Senate race

    COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS-TV) – During a concession speech on Tuesday, Rep. Ralph Norman questioned President Donald Trump’s involvement in South Carolina’s Republican primary for United States Senate.

    While he said he believes the president has good policies, but didn’t understand why Trump got involved in the race – which was won by Sen. Darline Graham.

    “I never understood why he got in this race,” Norman told supporters. “It is what it is and we accept it.”

    Norman and Graham two went to a runoff election after a 10-way primary on Aug. 11. Graham was appoint to the Senate following the death of her brother, longtime Sen. Lindsey Graham.

    While thanking supporters Tuesday night, Norman decried Graham taking outside PAC money.

    Norman did say he planned to call Graham to congratulate her, and will support her and other Republicans in November.

    Watch Norman’s full concession speech.

  135. Slump got into the SC senate race because he simply saw it as a chance to win at his endorsement game,
    And Norman totally knows that.
    Low hanging fruit…. stump’s favorite, and Norman just happened to be in the way. And Norman wants to play stupid? Doesn’t know why?
    Jesus what a bunch of ass clowns.

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