The core problem, Dalio said, is motivational asymmetry. For Iran’s leadership, the war is “existential,” a matter of regime survival, national pride, and religious commitment. For Americans, it’s about gas prices, and for U.S. politicians, it’s about the midterm elections. Dalio was clear over which side that calculus favors in a prolonged fight: “In war, one’s ability to withstand pain is even more important than one’s ability to inflict pain.” Iran’s strategy, he says, is to inflict that pain for as long as possible, then wait for the U.S. to quit, just as it has done in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

I wish Iran would consider taking out the broligharchs and their multiple compounds. The problems may be resolvable for a lengthier time, if so.

B**ches already lost. Lmao