“Ponzi and all of his successors tap into a fundamental part of human nature. One part of our brain tells us this is too good to be true. The other side tells us this is too good to miss. The key to any con is getting a mark to tip to the too-good-to-miss side.” ~Mitchell Zuckoff

The so-called ‘Jordan Option’ might be off the table for Trump’s ‘Deal of the Century,’ but it is very much alive in a court battle happening now in Jerusalem’s Magistrate Court.

******************

Last week and back-to-back, Netanyahu and Erdogan made day trips to the Russian capital for personal meetings with Vladimir Putin. Polite to both, he also dismissed the worries that brought his guests to Moscow. Why?

As the US sends B-52 nuclear bombers to South Korea, North Korea must decide whether or not it wants to go to war. Because of North Korea's close ties with Iran, supplying missile and nuclear technology, conflict there could light a short fuse to the Middle East.

In the middle of political attacks vis-a-vis Russia, US President Donald Trump has made his first military move in Syria. Two days before Netanyahu goes to Moscow, it is a direct challenge to Russian expansion in its Middle East stronghold.

Unwilling to wait for Trump to deal with his political enemies, Moscow has scoffed and quickly moved to re-align with Iran in Syria. As a result, Tehran's military presence is solidifying across Israel's northern borders, both in Syria and, via its Hezbollah proxy, in Lebanon.