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Culture War Roundup for the week of June 15, 2026

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Ok, so why is Iran not getting better terms out of the deal?

Once we put aside mass media speculation, what do we actually know about Iran's capabilities in the gulf? They claimed to be able to shut down the gulf, they threatened a few ships, and this spooked the insurance companies enough to bring traffic to a stop. But America claimed that Iran did not meaningfully control the Straits at all.

Iran can threaten gulf oil traffic, but America can blockade Iran, bomb them, and intercept all their counterattacks. It also appears that Iran cannot meaningfully threaten gulf oil that has been rerouted around the Straits, and they cannot threaten global oil traffic at all. This has lead to some global disruptions for sure, but not the worst-case scenarios that were predicted confidently a few months ago. So what can Iran do?

If Iran has as much control over the Straits as you suggest, and we can't counter them effectively as you suggest, why are they agreeing to a peace deal?

Ok, so why is Iran not getting better terms out of the deal?

Better terms than what? Billions (possibly hundreds of billions) in tribute from their enemies and the ability to do it all again whenever they want?