News Vérité

Not only does the People’s Republic of China (PRC) produce two-thirds of the lithium batteries needed for EVs worldwide, but it has also developed technology that can recharge an EV in 15 minutes. I’m not sure what the fastest charging time is in the U.S., but whenever I drive by a charging station near my home, the Teslas are parked there for hours recharging. This, of course, says nothing about how far ahead China is in producing sexy, drivable EVs, such as the Xiaomi EV illustrated above. The CEO of Ford ventured over there to drive some Chinese EVs and came bcck extolling their superiority to U.S. EVs. “It’s the most humbling thing I’ve ever seen,” said Ford CEO Jim Farley after touring Chinese car factories and driving their vehicles. “They have far superior in-vehicle technology.” He described Chinese EVs as “smatphones on wheels.” While we fight wars, China builds its economic superiority over the U.S. Can’t go on like this forever.

A childish TV outburst by Secretary of Defense/War Pete Hegseth notwithstanding, the Trump administration clearly did not have a plan in place if Iran chose to choke off the Strait of Hormuz. Indeed, the problem with this narrow sea passage for oil-laden vessels mirrors what I see as the administration’s failure in its overall war scheme. It chose to take out Iranian national assets, including its navy, its air and land defense systems, and its ability to build and launch missiles. This strategy failed to take into account the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the boats it controls in the Strait of Hormuz, and the drones and mines it can send to bottle up the strait. Faced with this crisis of his own making, President Trump has taken to social media to announce that “many countries” will be sending naval assets to the region to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. This is interesting because Trump just a week ago dismissed Great Britain’s offer of sending an aircraft carrier as basically “too little, too late.” As for Trump’s fantasy armada, who is going to join it? If the Gulf nations have any naval assets, they might join in — might.

Khamenei Redux is here, and Iran is flexing its muscles in the Strait of Hormuz, the 21-mile passage that transports 20 percent of the world’s oil. That is, it transports that amount in peacetime, but with Israel and the U.S. bombing Iran’s land-based assets to pieces, the country has taken to the seas with drones and mines to gain an upper hand in the ongoing battle. Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted multiple commercial vessels, including the Thai-flagged Mayuree Naree, the Marshall Islands-flagged Star Gwyneth, and a Japan-flagged containership, using projectiles and drones, causing fires and trapping crew members aboard some ships. Even after releasing 170 million gallons of oil from the nation’s Strategic Reserve, the U.S. — and the world — is still seeing gas prices soar. President Trump, in response, tried the spin that higher oil prices mean greater wealth for the U.S. Problem is, voters don’t see that wealth. They only see pump prices that are jumping almost daily. Trump’s envisioned two-day spanking, leading to a popular uprising in Iran, is now entering its third week with no clear path to “unconditional surrender” in sight. Trump needs to go ‘strait’ back to the drawing board and figure out