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Dear readers, I’m afraid that you have caught me in a bit of a funk this week, and not only because today I got a $30 parking ticket after leaving my car on the street for about three minutes as I ran into a building to collect a letter.

My usual sunny disposish and tendency to see the glass half full abandoned me when the District of Columbia saw fit to elect a socialist, Janeese Lewis George, to be its next mayor … and not just any old socialist, but a socialist who peddles in antisemitic topes. While the DC Democratic Party was running its primary election, details were emerging about President Donald Trump’s “deal” with the Islamic Republic of Iran, which drove me further into a state of despair. Has Trump been played by the terrorist state that is the Islamic Republic? If he has, I fear the civilised world will be left worse off than before the war.

Meanwhile back in DC, although it barely made the news, a major domestic terror plot was foiled. But there have been some recent encouraging developments: Elon Musk became a trillionaire; our jury system shows that it works well; and lots of World Cup international visitors are seeing what the United States (US) is all about. Let’s get to it, but first an apology. This Dispatch is a little longer than normal because I’m travelling for the next couple of weeks and so probably won’t be able to submit something for a while.

Iran Redux

Trump launched a war that I supported, and he did so in a remarkable partnership with our staunch ally Israel. After 47 years of the Islamic Republic causing chaos, war, terror, death, and destruction in the region and all around the world, I thought that the US was finally going to put an end to it permanently. I celebrated the deaths of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his foul band of psychopaths who were killing their own people at a rate not seen since the Babi Yar massacre.

As the brave Iranian people stood up to their ruthless oppressors, Trump promised them that “help was on the way”. And for a while it really seemed like the regime was teetering as the combined US and Israeli military laid waste to Iranian defenses. I believed Trump and maybe Trump even believed Trump. But now where are we?

Keen to reach a deal to avoid further economic disruption, it seems to me that Trump has been played by the Islamic Republic. There is so much to hate about this memorandum of understanding:

First, it gives the Iranians access to funds, not just unfrozen assets, but access to oil revenue. We know that it will use those funds to continue funding terror and chaos at home and abroad. It also doesn’t return the Straits of Hormuz to pre-war conditions but opens the way for Iran to start charging tolls.

Second, it allows the Iranians to keep their ballistic missile programmes. At a G7 press conference Trump even said he was fine with Iran having missiles because Saudi Arabia has them too. “It’s a little unfair for them not to have some,” he said. UNFAIR? What is he talking about? Equating Saudi missiles with those of Iran is sickening. Last I checked Saudi Arabia was not starting wars and firing missiles into its neighbours to kill as many civilians as possible. Iran, just so we are clear, is doing just that.

Third, the memorandum of understanding (MOU) would allow Iran to keep funding its proxies. Let’s not forget that Iran was behind the 7 October war. And now we’re just accepting that it can keep funding terror groups so that many more 7 Octobers can be waged?

Fourth, the MOU commits the Iranians to not pursuing nuclear weapons. Well, OK, but where have we heard that before? Islamists lie. Birds fly, fish swim, and the Islamic Republic’s leaders lie. It’s what they do. Of course, they will continue to pursue a nuclear weapon no matter what document they sign.

Fifth, the Iranians have masterfully driven a wedge between Israel and the US by linking the war to Lebanon. Iran’s proxy Hezbollah launched a war against Israel on 8 October and has been firing rockets at the country ever since. Is Israel supposed to just sit back and take it? What country would? Yet Trump now expects Israelis to just die at the hands of Hezbollah so that he can get his deal signed. Israel must face a barrage of rockets and be constrained in its response so that we can have lower fuel prices, and so Trump can and his party can perhaps lose a little less badly in the midterm elections. What’s going on here?

Donald Trump has undoubtedly been a great friend to Israel, but when he criticised Israeli attacks against Hezbollah for doing too much damage, he began undoing any goodwill. “Nasty things happen,” said Trump at a recent press conference when asked about the US’s mistaken attack on the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school. He’s correct, war is nasty, that’s why Hezbollah shouldn’t have attacked Israel and started a war. It’s also why Hezbollah shouldn’t hide behind civilians.

In a revealing moment, Trump suggested that Syria, led by former Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) commander Ahmed al-Sharaa, could go in and deal with Hezbollah. What do we know about the way ISIS conducts war? We know that it involves mass slaughter, rape, public beheadings, and the capture of women and girls into sex slavery. That’s supposed to be preferable to the careful military campaigns by the Israelis, in which civilians are always warned to get out of the way so that non-combatant casualties are kept to a minimum. It just shows how no one really cares about the deaths of ordinary people in the Middle East as long as Arabs are doing the killing. If a Jew is involved, however, then suddenly it’s a problem.

Israel obviously cannot and should not accept the conditions in the MOU. But the fact that Trump allowed Lebanon to be linked to the conflict with Iran shows how easily he can be manipulated. There is always a chance that Iran will overplay its hand. There is a chance that Trump doesn’t end up grabbing defeat from the jaws of victory. But for now, things look pretty bad with this MOU. One of the worst episodes in recent world history was President Joe Biden’s shameful and chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan. I fear this Trump MOU will surpass that.

In our latest episode of Talking Sense, Frans Cronje pushes back against that view, making a strong case that Trump had to end the conflict and that things are not as bad as I think. Crucially, he explains that the only way Israel survives and Western interests are protected in the region is by having a threatening Iran. I’m not fully convinced. The Jewish Institute for National Security of America puts out a useful comparison of the MOU with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (the 2015 Iran nuclear deal) and Trump’s war aims, and it doesn’t look good for Trump.

Whither DC?

Janeese Lewis George is set to win the Democratic Primary to be the next mayor of Washington, DC. Given that the Democratic Party is the only political game in town in this heavily Democratic city, the primary election is essentially the general election. What can we expect from Lewis George? Well, she’s a socialist, so, higher taxes, more spending, more regulation, less policing, and more dysfunction. DC’s economy has struggled since the pandemic and businesses have not returned. Residents have left too. Lewis George doesn’t seem to have even a rudimentary grasp of basic economics and her policies that aim to punish economic activity and reward sloth will only hasten the decline of the city.

Aside from her destructive economic policies, Lewis George has contempt for law-abiding citizens and a puzzling affection for violent criminals. Why do I say this? After the death of George Floyd, Lewis George was one of the main instigators of policing reform that not only hamstrung police officers, but also effectively let criminals off the hook. What was the result? A sharp increase in homicides, so that by 2023 the homicide rate in DC was 40 per 10 000 residents, something that rivals the most dangerous places on Earth. In DC most of those homicides were of young black men. In the name of “Black Lives Matter” Lewis George oversaw a dramatic increase in the deaths of black men. We can expect more of the same. And the increase in shoplifting thanks to her policies meant that businesses all over the city had to close because of losses from theft.

During the height of the crime wave, I went to a community meeting at which Lewis George spoke, alongside a police captain. First, Lewis George’s utter contempt for law enforcement was in evidence, and the arrogant way in which she continued to promote her failed pro-criminal policies was mind-blowing. Second, it was clear from the audience that overwhelmingly the older black residents of the neighbourhood wanted more police on the streets and to be protected from violent criminals. Meanwhile the younger, more affluent, woke activists who turned up, who were also overwhelmingly white, wanted fewer police and the decriminalisation of theft, among other things. As I sat in this meeting, I was watching Rob Henderson’s concept of “luxury beliefs” playing out before my eyes.

The pattern that I observed at the community meeting was reflected in the vote, with the young, white, far-left progressives, presumably with degrees in lesbian basket weaving from some elite college, supporting Lewis George, and the older black residents of the city supporting my preferred choice, Kenyan McDuffie. When it comes to Lewis George and her policies, I’m reminded of what George Orwell wrote: “There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them.”

Lewis George claims she opposes antisemitism, but then she accuses Israel of “committing genocide” a disgusting blood libel that fuels antisemitic attacks. Her election is just another data point showing how far left the Democratic party is rushing. There was a time when politicians felt the need to hide their hatred of Jews. Now parading your Jew hatred is an important element in the success of Democratic candidates.

The only hope we now have is that the Trump administration and Congress will step in and take over the running of the city. Washington DC is not a state, it is a federal district, and even though it was granted “home rule” in 1973, Congress still has a lot of power over budgets, policing, and other matters.

Terrorism Foiled

Readers may have heard about Trump holding an Ultimate Fighting Championship bout on the White House lawn, in part to celebrate his 80th birthday. What you might not have heard was that law enforcement foiled a major terrorist attack.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), five men were arrested after investigators uncovered a plan to launch explosive-laden drones near the White House to trigger panic and then direct fleeing crowds toward sniper teams positioned to attack attendees and high-profile targets. The investigation reportedly began after the mother of one of the suspects alerted authorities to her son's alarming behaviour and online activities. The FBI, Secret Service, and other agencies conducted a multi-state operation that disrupted the alleged plot before it could be carried out.

FBI director Kash Patel said the planned attacks were "stopped cold" after the threat was identified on 10 June, just four days before the event. Prosecutors have charged the defendants with conspiracy and other serious federal offenses, while investigators continue to examine whether additional individuals were involved.

The alleged leader of this ragtag group is Abraham Hermosillo Alvarez, who it seems was an illegal immigrant made legal during the Obama administration. It isn’t fully clear, yet, what his driving motivation was, other than being anti-Trump. One suspect is reported to have said that the group was attempting to target “capitalist elites” and “billionaires” or politicians who received donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. What is it with these violent nutcases and the Jews?

Had this attack succeeded, it would have been yet another act of violence by supposed progressives. We have seen people gunned down in the streets of DC in the name of “free Palestine”. We have had CEOs gunned down in the streets of Manhattan in the name of healthcare reform. Noah Rothman’s new book, Blood and Progress, explores this left-wing violence and he shows how leftists and leading Democrats have explained away, or excused, horrific acts of violence done in the name of advancing leftist causes. There seems to be no appetite to stand up to it, in fact we have quite the opposite. Sadly, I think we can expect more of these kinds of attacks.

Elon the Trillionaire

Simon Lincoln Reader has written about the world’s first trillionaire, Elon Musk, and he discusses the widespread condemnation of a man who, from nothing, has created whole new industries, changed the world for the better, and in so doing has become wealthy. Elon could have stayed in South Africa, but he moved first to Canada and then to the US and it is here that his true genius was set free.

Why could Elon flourish in the US? I think because commerce has been at the heart of our country since its founding. George Washington wasn’t just a talented general and one of the greatest men in history, he was also a very good businessman. As one of my favourite Presidents, Calvin Coolidge, said, “The chief business of the American people is business.” He went on to explain that “they are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing, and prospering in the world”.

This country protects property rights, and it protects the fruits of our labours. Yes, we could make business work better by lightening the regulatory burden and we could always benefit from lower taxes. But compared to almost all countries, this remains a country that celebrates commerce and, crucially, celebrates success.

As the Nobel laureate William Nordhaus showed, around 97% of the value created by billionaires, and now I guess trillionaires, went to consumers, and not to themselves.

The petty criticisms of Elon Musk are just that … petty. Elon Musk didn’t take anything from me or anyone else. He made his money by solving problems and providing people with goods and services they want and value more than the money they have in their wallets. I want to see the free-market system produce more trillionaires — many more — because those trillionaires will have become wealthy by giving me something I value or by solving some problem I may have.

Our Jury System Works

Readers surely remember OJ Simpson, and not just because of his sporting prowess and film career, but because of his trial for murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ron Goldman. Simpson got off because the jury decided it didn’t want to put another black man in prison, even though everyone — yes, everyone — knew that he brutally murdered those two innocent people. That was a low point in our judicial system, but in fact our jury system does work very well and is one of the most important institutions of this country.

Last year there was ghastly and tragic murder in Texas, in which one teenager stabbed another to death at an inter-high school athletics meet. It probably would have remained a local news story, save for one thing: the races of the victim and the perpetrator were different. In this case the victim, Austin Metcalf, was a white high school student, and the perpetrator, Karmelo Anthony, was a black student from a different school.

At the athletics event, each high school had its own tent, but Anthony decided, for some reason, to enter the tent of a different high school, that attended by Metcalf. After Metcalf asked Anthony to leave, a confrontation occurred and Anthony took out a knife he had, again for some reason, brought to the competition, and stabbed Metcalf in the chest. Tragically, the knife pierced Metcalf’s heart and the 17-year-old died soon afterwards.

As the case gained national attention, it quickly became the subject of intense commentary on social media and in the press. Much of that discussion focused on race, with some commentators seeking to fit the facts into broader narratives about racial conflict in America. Yet the evidence presented in court did not establish that racial animus motivated the confrontation. Rather, the dispute arose from a disagreement between two young men at a crowded school event and escalated into a violent act with devastating consequences. The tendency to view every tragedy through the lens of race can sometimes obscure the simpler and more troubling reality that individual choices, not racial identities, are often the decisive factor.

The case went to court, and last week Anthony was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison. One of the strengths of a free society is its commitment to judging people as individuals rather than as representatives of racial, ethnic, or political groups. The American legal system is built on the principle that responsibility is personal. Courts do not determine guilt based on a defendant's race, a victim's race, or the political narratives that may surround a case. They determine guilt based on evidence, testimony, and the law. That principle is especially important in an era when public debate often encourages people to sort events into competing tribal categories before all the facts are known.

The jury system exists to resist those pressures. Jurors are selected from the community and sworn to consider only the evidence presented in court. They hear witnesses, review exhibits, assess credibility, and apply the law as instructed by the judge. Unlike social media commentators, they are not permitted to rely on rumours, speculation, or ideological assumptions. Their task is not to advance a political narrative but to determine what happened.

In the Metcalf case, the jury heard the evidence, considered the claim of self-defense, and found Anthony guilty of murder. Americans can and do disagree about many aspects of public policy, race relations, and criminal justice. But this case offers a reminder that the rule of law remains one of the country's greatest strengths. In the end, the verdict was not rendered by activists, journalists, politicians, or internet commentators. It was rendered by twelve ordinary citizens who were entrusted with weighing the facts and reaching a judgement. That is how justice is meant to work in a constitutional republic, and it is one reason the American jury system continues to deserve public confidence and respect.

I sat on a jury a few years ago, and it was a fascinating and meaningful process to be part of. I have a jury summons in a few weeks and so maybe I’ll be reporting back on some different case … after we have determined guilt or innocence, of course.

The World Cup in the US of A

I must admit, dear reader, that I haven’t been paying much attention to the World Cup, though maybe I’ll focus on it as the tournament advances. But one thing that has been noted all over social media is how foreigners visiting this country for the first time are just blown away by it.

All over X, and Facebook, and Instagram, and TikTok, there are videos of visitors expressing their amazement at the size of our petrol stations, the good value of the food and goods on offer, the friendliness of the people, the wide-open spaces, and natural beauty of the land. Here’s a compilation of people visiting Bucee’s; here’s one of people just enjoying everyday life in America; and other of people out and about in cars; and finally some others enjoying our various culinary offerings.

What’s surprising to me is that people are surprised by what they find here. Perhaps they are surprised because back home they have consumed a steady diet of news about America from sneering elites that depict the US as a country where no one has healthcare; where everyone is vulgar and stupid; and where you have to run slalom down the road to avoid being shot. The reality is very different. This is a beautiful and prosperous country filled with kind, generous, friendly, and decent people. Come and see for yourselves.

Have a good weekend, until next time.