The main reason why the West is so apologetic and uncritical about Israel is their close ties and influence in Western Banking and financial markets.They have enormous influence over the US Congress via AIPAC and many other lobby groups.

Israel and its associates are dragging the planet towards a major conflict with Russia and China.We are the main aggressors via the military industrial complex that Dwight Eisenhower warned us about in the early sixties.Ross Gittens wrote an article a week ago called "The Four Business Gangs that Run America" This quote from Eisenhower was mentioned in the context that these business gangs have far too much power and no one or country with the exception of Russia and China will stand up to them.

Iceland refused to accept austerity and poverty that these criminal banking cartels are imposing on us.The British Govt labeled them a Terrorist State.Iceland is now beginning to prosper with their own Govt Banks and sovereignity.

The closing of the straits of Hormuz becomes a diminishing factor as the geopolitical environment changes with the iminent decoupling of America and others from middle eastern oil. This oil dependence has been the greatest factor in the 'west' involvement in Middle East politics. Soon, when Iran threatens or actually does close the straits, the US gulf fleet can just sail home and say 'so what'.

Agree with Bazz; looks like the two alternatives.

Like Worldwatcher, I wonder if I read the same article here as some others.

It is not generally realised that the US does not get much of its oil
from the Gulf states. It gets its imports from West Africa,
Sth America and Canada.
No, if Iran closed the Hormuz Strait the US fleet would have to reopen
it as one barrel not delivered is one out of everyone's bowsers.
Oil is fungible, a shortage anywhere is a shortage everywhere.
if the Strait was closed for say a week, I would bet the next week we
would have petrol rationing. We have about two weeks on the sea and
one week in terminals and two days in service stations.
Saudi Arabia is the world's second largest oil producer. Cut it off
and we would be in real trouble.
They have a Red Sea terminal but it could not supply all that much.
We get our petrol & diesel from Singapore and oil from Vietnam.
Shell in Sydney has closed as has the refinery in Melbourne.
Caltex at Kurnell closes later this year.
We could keep going for about three weeks, but experience overseas
shows that if the Strait was closed today, the service stations would
be empty tomorrow.

Bazz if there was an oil shortage and rationing,people would soon convert to gas.We have lots of gas here.Also during WW2 when there were fuel shortages,people used coal burners to power their engines.

It would be good for our economy if we all used gas because most of the money would stay here rather than going offshore.

Yes, I agree Arjay, we should be using the CNG that we have.
In the case of the Hormuz Strait closure it would not be relevant
because it will take several years to convert the car & truck fleet.
There is another problem with it, and that is we may not have enough
money available to do the conversion and build the infrastructure.
The US has realised that they cannot afford to change to gas.
The one thing that they and we could do would be to change the trucks
to CNG and equip the truck stops with CNG.
However for cars, forget it.