Tidbits-Mar 5- Reader Comments: Iran War; Donald Trump Is a War Criminal; Cartoons Express Our Reality; Trump’s Epstein Ties; Iran War Cost Tracker – Estimated Taxpayer Spending; People’s Congress for The Hague Group; Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire
-
Here We Go Again... -- Cartoon by Jack Ohman
-
State of the Union -- Cartoon by Adam Zyglis
-
Donald Trump Is a War Criminal (Seymour Joseph)
-
War -- Cartoon by Tommy Siegel
-
So Far, So Good -- Cartoon by Bill Bramhall
-
Re: St. John’s University Says It No Longer Recognizes Faculty Unions After 56 Years (David Berger)
-
Why Trump hated the Iran deal -- Cartoon by Patrick Chappatte
-
The Big Dumb War Cycle -- Cartoon and Commentary by Jen Sorensen
-
Trump's Epstein Ties -- Cartoon by Guffo
Resources:
Announcements:
-
Virtual Attendance - People's Congress for the Hague Group - End the Nakba - March 7 (Progressive International)
-
Commemoration of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire - New York City - March 25 (New York City Central Labor Council)
.
.
Here We Go Again... -- Cartoon by Jack Ohman

Jack Ohman
March 2, 2026
Jack Ohman’s You Betcha!
State of the Union -- Cartoon by Adam Zyglis

Adam Zyglis
February 26, 2026
The Buffalo News
Donald Trump Is a War Criminal
Donald Trump is a war criminal! His recent actions in Venezuela, the boat bombings in the Caribbean, and now, together with Israel, his military assault on Iran, are all war crimes. And Congressional Republicans, by their silence, are accomplices to those crimes.
Our Constitution clearly establishes that law is superior to power. The Trump administration believes the opposite. Despite losing case after case in the courts — and thanks to a servile Department of Justice — Trump is able to thumb his nose at those decisions.
He also ignores the will of the people, the vast majority of whom have demonstrated their opposition to his destructive actions.
Trump must be stopped! Apparently the only vehicle for stopping him is a complete turnaround in Congress in the coming midterm elections. Whatever flaws we may find with the Democrats, they are the only hope for impeaching him — and consequently continuing the case against him relating to January 6. This should end by putting him where he belongs: in prison.
Seymour Joseph
February 28
War -- Cartoon by Tommy Siegel

Tommy Siegel
March 1, 2026
Tommy Siegel
So Far, So Good -- Cartoon by Bill Bramhall

Bill Bramhall
March 3, 2026
New York Daily News
Re: St. John’s University Says It No Longer Recognizes Faculty Unions After 56 Years
(posting on Portside Labor)
This is going to happen again and again.
David Berger
Posted on Portside's Facebook page
Why Trump hated the Iran deal -- Cartoon by Patrick Chappatte

Patrick Chappatte
May 13, 2018
Der Spiegel
The Big Dumb War Cycle -- Cartoon and Commentary by Jen Sorensen

What worries me about our probable new war footing (aside from the mass death, etc.) is what happens domestically given our increasingly fact-free and lawless political environment. To say violence and abuses of power are likely is an understatement.
Jen Sorensen
January 8 2020
https://jensorensen.com/
Join the Sorensen Subscription Service!
Or subscribe via Patreon
Trump's Epstein Ties -- Cartoon by Guffo

Guffo
March 5, 2026
Le Monde
This cartoon by Guffo, a Mexican member of Cartooning for Peace, appeared on the front page of Le Monde on February 5.
Every day, Le Monde publishes a cartoon from Cartooning for Peace on its front page.
Iran War Cost Tracker -- Estimated U.S. Taxpayer Spending
Based on the Pentagon's preliminary estimate of $1 billion per day
Jennifer Kavanagh of Defense Priorities estimates the U.S. "easily" spent more than $10 billion on air-defense systems in the first 48 hours. Iran launched 2,000+ drones and 771+ ballistic missiles, each requiring interceptors costing millions.
Source: NYT DealBook, Mar 4, 2026 (Niko Gallogly)
In Israel's 12-day war in June 2025, the U.S. used ~150 of its ~600 THAAD interceptors — a quarter of the entire stockpile. In 2025, the U.S. purchased only 12 new THAAD interceptors, with 37 more planned for 2026.
At current consumption rates, interceptor depletion creates vulnerabilities for NATO, Ukraine, Taiwan, and Japan — all of which depend on U.S. defense supplies.
What Has That Money Bought
-
Feb 28 · 04:00 UTCOperation Epic Fury beginsFirst wave: Tomahawk + JASSM-ER strikes on air defenses, C2 nodes. 1,000+ targets struck Day 1.
-
Feb 28 · 04:30 UTCCyber/Space operations - 'first movers'Coordinated cyber and space operations conducted as opening phase, degrading Iranian C3 capabilities
-
Feb 28 · 06:30 UTC3 U.S. aircraft lost to friendly fire from KuwaitEstimated $90,000,000 per airframe — likely F-15E or F/A-18E/F class; shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses in apparent misidentificationTracked cost: $270,000,000
-
Feb 28 · 08:00 UTCFirst Tomahawk salvo — est. 120+ missiles120 Tomahawk Block V at ~$2.0M each (replacement cost: $1.75M–$2.2M per RTX contract)Tracked cost: $240,000,000
-
Feb 28 · 12:00 UTCJASSM-ER strikes on hardened targetsEst. 60 JASSM-ER at ~$1.5M eachTracked cost: $90,000,000
-
Mar 1 · 02:00 UTCSecond wave strikes — DEAD/SEAD operationsSuppression of enemy air defenses, follow-on Tomahawk strikes (~100 additional)Tracked cost: $180,000,000
-
Mar 1 · 14:00 UTCGBU-57 MOP strikes on Fordow enrichment facilityEst. 8 GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators at ~$3.5M each, delivered by B-2 Spirit ($150K/flight hr × 30 hrs per sortie)Tracked cost: $28,000,000
-
Mar 1 · 18:00 UTCNaval strikes on Iranian forces — 9 vessels hitAnti-ship missile strikes on Iranian naval forces. Est. ~30–50 Harpoon ($1.5M ea) and Naval Strike Missiles ($2.2M ea) expended to neutralize 9 Iranian vessels. Separate from Tomahawk strikes already counted.Tracked cost: $75,000,000
see more here
This tracker exists because the public deserves real-time transparency about the cost of military operations — not just after-the-fact reports years later. The counter uses the Pentagon's own preliminary estimate of $1 billion per day. Independent analyses suggest the true cost may be significantly higher.

The Nakba Never Ended
For more than seventy-seven years, the Palestinian people have confronted and resisted a permanent Israeli regime of settler-colonialism, apartheid, and genocide.
Today, those crimes continue — enabled by an international infrastructure of courts and ports, foundries and factories, parliaments and tech platforms, insurers and investors.
Millions of ordinary people across the world have mobilised to do just that. From São Paulo to London, Kuala Lumpur to Tangie
To End the Nakba, We Must First We Must First Cut These Circuits of Complicity
Millions of ordinary people across the world have mobilised to do just that. From São Paulo to London, Kuala Lumpur to Tangier, the peoples of the world have called on their governments to take urgent action to end the Gaza genocide.
And in January 2025, a Coalition of Courageous Governments Heeded That Call
Colombia, South Africa, Malaysia, and others came together to form The Hague Group: the first bloc of states committed to the defence of international law.
Together, they adopted measures to end arms exports, denied harbour to Israel-bound ships, and committed to prosecute the criminals who executed the genocide of the Palestinian people.
But One Year From the Formation of the Hague Group, The Call for Urgent Action Has Only Grown Louder
To close every port, to stop every shipment, to prosecute every criminal — we need political will to meet people's power.
That is why, on the first anniversary of The Hague Group's formation, popular forces from across the world — unions and movements, parties and parliamentarians — return to its birthplace for this historic People's Congress.
Together, we will forge a common plan to end the Nakba — across courts, ports, contracts, and beyond.

Follow Online - Click here

Wednesday, March 25 at 11:30AM: Join the NYC Labor Movement and our allies as we commemorate the anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in 1911.
We’ll gather at the site of the fire at Washington Place & Greene Street to honor the 146 lives lost and to reaffirm our commitment to protecting workers today and for generations to come.
