On Tuesday US president Trump wrote on his "Truth Social" that "a whole civilization will die tonight". Iran would be bombed into the Stone Age, if the Iranian negotiators did not agree a "deal" to his liking.
It's hard to believe that this bombastic posturing comes out of the mouth of the same president who presides over the institution which just propelled astronauts deeper into space than ever before. Yes, here we see savage barbarism and scientific and technological progress side by side!
Of course, whatever Trump may say, and despite his insulting hype and exaggeration, it's not his own personal likes and dislikes which will prevail when it comes to this war. He also wrote, in the very same "tweet", that regime change had already been achieved.
Then vice president, JD Vance said shortly afterwards that the "US" had largely achieved its military objectives, adding that the deadline for destroying more of Iran's power supply and bridges, railway lines, etc., "expires at 0000 GMT Wednesday". So as far as he was concerned, a deal was possible.
Certainly, it's the case that Trump has got an "off ramp", and can claim that "he" has already won the war. When he shocked many people by saying "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran... there will be nothing like it!!! Open the F***in' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH!", the Strait was already open to tankers and cargo ships flying non-hostile flags. Even a French-owned, Malta-flagged tanker was allowed through.
And, as has always been the case, the "flags" under which commercial shipping operates are often - if not usually - those of small obscure countries with the Iranian regime has no problem.
But who does have "the bomb"?
However if the US/Israeli air forces does proceed with the deliberate bombing of power plants and, for instance, strikes the Bushehr nuclear plant, leading to core meltdown, this would mean the release of dangerous ionising radiation which would contaminate the whole Gulf region. This radiation would also be blown on wind currents to other parts of the world, less predictably, as happened after the explosion of the Chernobyl reactor in the former Soviet Union in 1986.
And of course there are also reactors located just across the sea in the United Arab Emirates. A nuclear explosion nearby could hit them too. And then one could well ask - who needs a nuclear bomb?
It's more than ironic that Trump still talks about the aim of his war as being "to prevent Iran building a nuclear weapon". But at the same time threatens to set off what would amount to nuclear explosions right across the region, by targeting this plant! Anyway, who is most likely to use a so-called "tactical" nuclear strike against Iran, if not the only force in the region which has this capability - i.e., the Israeli army.
What's more, the US and Israeli airforces have, under instruction from Trump and Netanyahu, already targeted vital civilian infrastructure and bridges (South Pars, Kharg Island) - so if the Iranian regime does not surrender on Trump's terms today, the war is likely to continue at this same already-escalated level.
And the price of petrol and diesel?
This war obviously affects the working class in Britain. We may oppose it, but we cannot avoid the cost, even if it is only felt our pockets. Fortunately for us, our children are not dying under missiles and bombs, like children in Iran and Lebanon, nor are they dying of thirst, as in Gaza.
The oil price shot up as soon as Trump attacked on 28 February. In fact it was speculators and profiteers who sent the market flying, not demand nor supply. The price has been up and down ever since, although it's not as glued to Trump's lips today, as it initially was.
And when the supply is actually curtailed in the coming weeks due to the knock-on effect of the part-closure of Hormuz/Suez, or the prolongation of the war, the price will go up further. This, when British energy production still relies on imported gas and oil and was already among the most costly in the world. As for African and Asian countries, the situation is already critical.
Here the cost of petrol has increased by 10-22p a litre - (7-15%). That's bad enough. But since most transport by road runs on diesel, the rise in its price - so far to £1.88/litre (+40p or +20%) - means cutting deliveries and passing on the extra costs to customers... i.e., the rest of us, when the cost of living is already far too high.
And by the way, the blind, aggressive policy of the Trump administration will not be stopped by UN resolutions. Those who propose this are rooted in the self-same declining profit system which always tries to solve its problems through war. It's only when the working class takes up the cudgel - united across all borders to stop the war-makers - that an alternative society can and will be built, based on the best humankind has to offer... on earth and in space! That's an urgent task in front of all of us.