iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 24/08/2026

Seems bad for US standing and policy that this is becoming a normal response to the president (see Iran before this)

Bloomberg notifications stating:

Canada sees little chance of resuming talks with the US before the midterms and is preparing to ride out Donald Trump's term

001

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 02/04/2026

Iran Is Drafting a Protocol With Oman to Oversee Strait of Hormuz www.bloomberg.com/news/live-bl...

1h 7m ago
By Eltaf Najafizada, Breaking News Editor:
Iran & Middle East
Iran is drafting a protocol with Oman to monitor traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, state-run IRNA reported, citing Iran Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi.
"Naturally, these requirements do not constitute restrictions, but are intended to facilitate and ensure safe passage and provide better services to ships transiting this route," Gharibabadi told IRNA.
He said vessel traffic through the strait should take place under Iran and Oman's supervision and coordination.

010

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 01/04/2026

this is kind of like if the brothers in mouse hunt announced they won after destroying their house and financial futures in the pursuit of killing the mouse as the mouse survives www.bloomberg.com/news/live-bl...

By Hadriana Lowenkron, White House Correspondent
Trump, in his primetime address Wednesday, will cast the US as having met or exceeded all of its military goals, according to an official. These include:
• Destroying Iran's ballistic missiles and production facilities
• Annihilating its navy
• Ensuring that Tehran's proxies can no longer destabilize the region
• Ensuring that the country can never obtain a nuclear weapon
The speech will stress that the conclusion of operations may come in two to three weeks, the official said.
Trump to Tout Military Gains, Push Two-to-Three Week Iran Exit

031

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 28/03/2026

I have been thinking about Houthi maritime capabilities in particular and how they may impact the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea (once again):

Maritime Capabilities
Since 2015, Houthi forces have engaged in targeting commercial shipping and warships in the Red Sea. Outside of the use of anti-ship missiles noted earlier, the Houthis have used sea mines and water-borne improvised explosive devices (WBIEDs) against targets at sea. Evidence suggests that some of the Houthis' maritime capabilities come from the Yemeni government's stockpile from before the start of the war, as well as elements that they have developed themselves, 4 and they have also been given assistance and supplies by Iran.

By January 2017, the Houthis had begun using WBIEDs to target ves-
sels in the Red Sea.
Since then, the Houthis have regularly used these
WBIEDs to target commercial ships and warships. Some of these WBIEDs appear to have been made by modifying patrol boats that the UAE donated to the Yemeni Navy prior to the current conflict. A Conflict Armament Research report from 2017 did not find evidence suggesting "direct Iranian involvement in the device's construction, but suggests that certain components were sourced from Iran or through Iranian channels."98 Since 2017, the Houthis have developed WBIEDs resembling fishing boats that "could be more easily hidden, and harder to identify as a threat. It may also make it cheaper to build since existing fishing vessels can be converted."9 The rising use of these vessels and the development of WBIEDs looking more like civilian fishing vessels could make it more difficult for targets to distinguish between civilian watercraft and WBIEDs that may, in turn, lead to a decline in averted attacks or inadvertent targeting of civilians by conventional forces.
The Houthis have deployed a mixture of conventional and improvised sea mines 00 off Yemen's Red Sea coast since 2016.101 Conflict Armament Research could not determine the exact origin of the naval mines utilized by the Houthis but noted that a United Nations panel of experts believed them to be of Soviet origin. It is also believed that some of these naval mines were produced by Iran. 103 The Houthis use naval mines "despite the risk to

commercial, fishing, and aid vessels."104 These mines have inflicted damage on civilian watercraft and military vessels and have caused both civilian and military casualties, 105 It is unclear whether these mines have caused significant damage to the Coalition's navies, but the Coalition has worked to clear mines from the Red Sea's waters. 106
The risk of future confrontations involving Houthi maritime capabilities is likely heightened by the recent use of mining, suspected by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval forces, of merchant ships in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. Should the Houthis follow the lead of their state sponsor, the Red Sea is a potential site for horizontal escalation that would stretch U.S. resources.

111

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 25/03/2026

www.bloomberg.com/news/live-bl...

Iran has set five conditions to end the war, according to Press TV:
A complete halt to “aggression and “assassinations” by the enemy.
The establishment of concrete mechanisms to ensure that the war is not reimposed on the Islamic Republic.
Guaranteed and clearly defined payment of war damages and reparations.
The conclusion of the war across all fronts and for all resistance groups involved throughout the region
International recognition and guarantees regarding Iran’s sovereign right to exercise authority over the Strait of Hormuz.

000

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 02/03/2026

interesting denial here as it implies that Bloomberg said Qatar’s Patriot inventory “has been depleted” when the article says that Qatar has inventory for 4 days of use at current rates (see screenshot below) www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Qatar's stocks of Patriot interceptor missiles will last four days at the current rate of use, according to an internal analysis seen by Bloomberg News. Doha has been privately urging a swift end to the conflict.

030

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 09/02/2026

went to Nicollet Ave and 26th St. today

wall with alternating posters
Renee Nicole Good American Mom Murdered by ICE (with a photo of Good)
Alex Pretti ICU Nurse Murdered by ICE (with a photo of Pretti)
ICE CAN’T BREAK U.S.
AMERICA STANDS WITH MINNESOTA

memorial for Alex Pretti with cardboard signs, candles, and flowers

memorial for Alex Pretti with cardboard signs, American flags, candles, and flowers next to a sidewalk where people stand looking over it

040

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 08/02/2026

watching my son and reading:

Book cover for
The Historical Essays of Otto Hintze
Edited with and Introduction by Felix Gilbert

000

Erik E. Mueller @erikemueller.com · 31/01/2026

apnews.com/article/immi...

$MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Intensive care nurses immediately doubted the word of federal immigration officers when they arrived at a Minneapolis hospital with a Mexican immigrant who had broken bones in his face and skull. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents initially claimed Alberto Castañeda Mondragón had tried to flee while handcuffed and "purposefully ran headfirst into a brick wall," according to court documents filed by a lawyer seeking his release. But staff members at Hennepin County Medical Center determined that could not possibly account for the fractures and bleeding throughout the 31-year-old's brain, said three nurses familiar with the case. "It was laughable, if there was something to laugh about," said one of the nurses, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss patient care. "There was no way this person ran headfirst into a wall."$