Contradictions "R" us ...

A banner of President Trump hangs from the Department of Justice building in Washington, DC on February 23, 2026. Annabelle Gordon/Sipa USA/AP/File

The pix says it all. 1984 applies.

1. The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with war, 
2. The Ministry of Truth with lies, 
3. the Ministry of Love with torture and 
4. the Ministry of Plenty with starvation. 

These contradictions are not accidental, nor do they result from ordinary hypocrisy:

they are deliberate exercises in doublethink.

The Ministries of Peace & Truth apply.

Just days before the United States launched a major military operation in Iran, FBI Director Kash Patel fired a dozen agents and staff members from a counterintelligence unit tasked with monitoring threats from Iran, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

They were ousted for a simple reason: Each was involved in the investigation of President Donald Trump’s alleged retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

One cannot make this up but ... it gets better.

Use of ordinance. In this case, THAADS.

While uncertainties thwart a precise calculation, one can nevertheless parametrically analyze how different use rates would affect the interceptor inventory, using deliveries as the baseline. The most optimistic estimates of June 2025 THAAD interceptor usage have been around 100 interceptors.16 On the other hand, the larger reported estimate of “more than 150” from the Wall Street Journal suggests a need to assess some potentially higher estimates.17 For example, the effect of firing between 100 and 250 THAAD interceptors would deplete the inventory by between 20 and 50 percent (see Figure 5).

The effect of this expenditure is more acute in light of force structure considerations, specifically reload rates. The United States has fielded eight THAAD batteries, each with six launchers and eight interceptors per launcher, or 48 interceptors per battery.18 Under this assumption, that would mean that 384 of the previously delivered THAAD interceptors were assigned to fielded THAAD launchers, which would leave 150 for reload and spare capacity. 

Question, how many of these missiles have been fired over the past four days? 

Guesstimate, <150 remaining "ain't a lot.

Replacing those interceptors will also have to contend with limits to THAAD production capacity. Figure 6 shows another way to look at the P-21 data with each color representing a different procurement fiscal year. This shows that the gap in new U.S. deliveries starts with the last FY 2020 procurement interceptors. As of the June 2025 budget release, this gap is not slated to end until April 2027 when MDA will receive interceptors that it obligated procurement funds for in FY 2021. Counting only the FY 2021–FY 2024 interceptors, MDA has a pipeline of 100 procured missiles yet to be delivered.

So, the calculus holds. Replacements take time and the US doesn't have any so ... the US will run out of ordinance before Iran does as it takes 2-3 interceptors to take out one incoming and said incoming will be far cheaper than $15 million per interceptor.

In closing.

According to one study, THAAD interceptors accounted for almost half of all U.S. and Israeli interceptors used to protect Israel against Iranian medium-range ballistic missiles. The study estimated that 92 THAAD interceptors were used during the conflict out of an estimated supply of 632 interceptors. The study further suggested that it could take three to eight years to replenish the THAAD interceptor stockpile, with each THAAD interceptor valued at approximately $12.7 million.

And finally ...

Franz-Stefan Gady, a military analyst, called the conflict “a race for and against time.” Israel, the United States and their allies are trying to destroy missiles, launchers and communication nodes as quickly as possible, he said, so that more advanced Iranian missiles cannot easily be launched when interceptors are in short supply.

Even the heavily armed Israel, toward the end of the 12-day war against Iran in June, had to limit its use of interceptors, allowing some Iranian missiles to land if they were not deemed to be close to key sites or cities.

Trump and Hegseth have reached their level of incompetence thanks to the immortal Peter Principle.

Endgame ... 

Without the inceptors, Israel becomes toast as Israel's tiny while Iran is larger than Western Europe,
with this comparison in hand, nukes become the only option for Israel to survive. 

To be continued ...