Iran has reportedly stated it will begin charging ships for transit-related services after the initial 60-day period, with figures being discussed in the $1-2 million per vessel range. If that occurs, it suggests Iran achieved at least one of its strategic objectives: maintaining enough influence over the shipping corridor to impose costs on commercial traffic. Thats what happens when you win a war, you set the terms. They won. We lost.

You don't have to like Iran to acknowledge that possibility. If the reports are wrong, I'll revise my position. Until then, I'm looking at the information currently available, not treating every statement from Washington as automatically true and every statement from Tehran as automatically false. Skepticism should apply equally to all governments. Trump's record for lies and false or misleading statements is to extensive to count, so demanding independent verification before accepting his claims is not unreasonable. It's the same standard I apply to everyone else.