Highgate

Iran have played it down so far, presumably for PR purposes to emphasise to their population and the outside world that Israel can't damage them, so it'll be interesting to see if that's an end to the direct tit-for-tat or not.
I expect exchanges of attacks between Israel and Iranian proxies will continue unabated.

Yeah, nothing to disagree with here.  Seems perfectly plausible to me that the Iranian regime is trying not to look weak in response to Israeli aggression while at the same time it wants to suppress any dissenting voices regarding it's policies among it's own population.  Those two points don't seem like a contradiction to me. 
I don't think anyone needs any convincing on how awful the regime in Iran is and how unfortunate Iranians are to have to suffer through it. 

One for the Metallica fans amongst us

Even away from politics, on subjects like football, people just post pure engagement bait, because more comments and interaction means more revenue. The decision to give posters revenue may have been made with good intentions, but it’s made the app worse overall imo. 

I think to discuss him in any depth would bring us into areas prohibited by the forum.  He was only mentioned here because of his direct comments related to Palestine. 

I'm not sure it was a political own goal.  I think the main reason for this attack was to so the Iranian government could maintain credibility with the Iranian population.  After Israel's attack on the embassy in Syria, or the consulate building next to the embassy I should say, the Iranian regime would have lost all credibility at home had it done nothing.  So it launched this very publicized attack on Israel, and despite most missiles being shot down it did manage to hit the very military base from which Israel launched the attack on the embassy/consulate.  
News reports in Iran are, as you'd expect, exaggerating the damage caused in Israel enormously, suggesting the base has been completely destroyed and so on.  So far, as a domestic PR operation, it seems to have been a success and the Iranian regime are saying they are satisfied with what occurred and their retaliation is complete. 
Unfortunately despite most of the world urging Israel to do nothing in response..... it's likely that there is a very serious response coming Iran's way.  

Difficult not to look at the crazy comments sometimes though, I'm sure a lot of people are falling into the same trap. 
Like the orange fella over at Truth Social, love him or hate him the nonsense he spouts is very hard to ignore.  
I suppose that's the model that X and other social media platforms are running with, promote the crazy, the controversial and the confrontational and people will pay attention. 

He seemed fine on X factor. 

Normal bloke

What's the alleged conspiracy that you are objecting to?  
Also who have I ridiculed as a conspiracy theorist? 

No apology required mate, I think you're just vocalising some of the same concerns many of us share. When you look at the 'tactics' employed by the IDF one might think that the raising of Gaza was done with the specific intention of making any return as challenging as possible. As it is, it's a bloody mess, quite literally.
That said, I'm not sure I share your view about calls for a Palestinian state being poorly timed. For me, it's now or never. Pressure must be brought to bear IMO. Likewise, irrespective of how enormous the task might seem to us, I doubt the Palestinians themselves view it that way, but before any of these notions become salient, we need to see a lasting truce and I concede that this may yet prove a massive hurdle.
On a brighter note, Blighty has at least played a minor role in the purportedly largest aid airdrop to date. Bombing the Yemen one week, aid work the next. Life in the RAF is nothing if not diverse 😑

And did it?.
I've been waiting soooooo long for someone to tell me for sure

I'll always quote someone if I'm responding to anything they've said, or tag them at least. My point was really that while any lasting peace seems a million miles off now, that doesn't preclude a ceasefire, which as you've said in your response, is something nearly everyone wants to see, especially now that the aid convoys have been halted.
There's over a million already suffering the effects of famine and that number will now increase rapidly and with devastating effect, while the West sits by and does nothing but posture, or in the US's case, restocks Israel's armoury. Yet while good folk march and protest against leaders who do not represent their views and wishes, some seem more fixated with the nature of the protests than the potential starvation of hundreds of thousands of children, not to mention their parents.
Are we to suppose that Palestinian kids might be part of the bedrock that supports Hamas. Not for me. Not now, not ever.

I'll just say it then; Netanyahu and anyone, Jews or otherwise, who supports him and his gang of IDF murderers are flat out scum. Enough is enough. Haul the f***** to The Hague and bang him up for life. Won't happen of course, because being pissed at him and his ilk is mandatorily antisemitic. 
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described the attack by the Israeli military on the World Central Kitchen team, which killed seven aid workers, as tragic but unintentional.
“It happens in war,” he said.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-68710949

This really shouldn't be news to anyone....Netanyahu didn't want serious negotiations about a 2 state solution with the Palestinian Authority, much better to have Hamas in charge with whom he could refuse to negotiate with and therefore maintain the status quo.  
https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-years-netanyahu-propped-up-hamas-now-its-blown-up-in-our-faces/
I'm sure the intent of the Israeli government was that there were never be an event like October 7th,  but to state that Hamas wouldn't be as strong without Netanyahu's policies over the years  doesn't seem to me to be controversial, and definitely not conspiratorial. 
I've disagreed with your views numerous times on Climate Change, more often than not really, but I don't ever recall calling you a conspiracy theorist. 

It's irrefutable that Israel went so far as actually helping to create Hamas.
Recently, articles in Washington Post, New York Times and even Israeli newspapers have suggested that funding and other aid to Hamas went on much longer than the set-up (the aims of which may or may not have been the overthrow and eventual replacement of Fatah and the PLO).
Perhaps it was a case of "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer still" - but the bottom line is such that the very existence of Hamas means that there can be no Palestine unless Israel wills it - and therein lies the rub. Very convenient for Netanyahu because the existence of Palestine is an "Over my dead body" issue for him.

It's not a conspiracy theory. 

That's how my mum passed, less the hernia bit. Much as I despise Netanyahu, I wouldn't wish that on him and his removal from office and a full and thorough investigation into his conduct and the behaviour of the IDF during hostilities to date would suffice.
That said, I do find the protests quite revealing; on the one hand and quite understandably, those marching in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Be’er Sheva, Caesarea and other cities on Saturday night see Netanyahu as effectively blocking the return of the remaining Israeli hostages through his continued intransigence and reluctance to allow a meaningful halt in hostilities, or any sustained supply of food and medicine to those displaced. They're not wrong and obviously any civilised individual would sympathise with their plight. What I don't sense, however, is any such regard at all for the 32,490 Palestinians have been killed and 74,889 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. Likewise the 10,000+ lying dead and rotting under the rubble that once housed them. Or the 1.9 million displaced Palestinians, hoarded like rats into corners, dying of famine and disease and still subject to ongoing Israeli incursions. Plenty of Israeli settlers are already securing beachfront slots for development in the newly occupied lands though, their haste to secure the best locations, indecent to say the least. I suppose the plight of their fellow Israelis might not be so prominent in their thinking, as that of others, or perhaps personal gain simply matters more.
And while on the subject of gross hypocrisy, Biden's posturing seems simply that in light his call for a ceasefire, whilst signing off on transfers to fund and arm the Israeli war effort worth billions of dollars. These include more than 1,800 MK84 2,000lb (900kg) bombs and 500 MK82 500lb bombs, as well as 25 F35A fighter jets, The Washington Post and Reuters news agency have said. So what we have here now is the West is no longer supporting Netanyahu and the IDF's actions, just weaponising them, a distinction that will doubtless make our Easter eggs taste all the sweeter. 

I think that's what this thread and the spacex threads are about. But the posts about Facebook/Meta don't go any way to answer that question, do they? They mostly seem to be saying "social media good or bad for humanity", but there's really not going to be much argument that they are collectively bad. The only difference is that the supporters of Musk are claiming X is good for humanity, where everyone else is saying all social media is bad for humanity. 

From The Independent:
AOC skewers Elon Musk’s anti-immigrant stance with four-word tweet
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called out tech billionaire Elon Musk for a baseless anti-immigration post.
Responding to a post from Mr Musk that claimed Democrats want to “import voters,” the progressive New York lawmaker pointed out an undeniable fact in response on Thursday.
“You’re literally an immigrant,” Ms Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X. Mr Musk was born and raised in South Africa — he moved to Canada in 1988 before migrating to the US.
“And for everyone saying ‘yeah, but legal!!’ may I once again remind you that seeking asylum is legal, too,” the lawmaker continued.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/aoc-elon-musk-immigration-b2520835.html

Geez, you mods have powers beyond what I imagined!

Plus one on ditching the pre match music. Its awful.

It's crap, cringey and completely unnecessary. 
That is all.

It's the new culture war, pick a side buddy. You are either a free speech hero and on Musk's side, or you lover Zuckers and worship Facebook. THERE ARE NO OTHER OPTIONS.