My neighbor Swamp Rabbit was beside himself with anger. “The hog monster is spending a billion dollars a day blowin’ up Iran. He called the war a little excursion. He says he’ll feel it in his bones when it’s time to call off the dogs.”

“He’ll feel it in his bone spurs,” I said.

But Swamp Rabbit was in no mood for jokes. He was ranting. Imagine if just a fraction of that war money was used in this country to improve health care or childcare or affordable housing or public schools. Instead, we have a president ignoring Congress and starting a war for reasons he can’t even explain. It wasn’t regime change, the mullahs are entrenched over there. The “imminent” threat of a nuclear attack by Iran was bogus, too.

“It’s like 1980,” my besotted neighbor said. “Iran had them American hostages and everybody over here was singing ‘Bomb Iran’ to the tune of ‘Barbara Ann.’ Except there ain’t no hostages this time. Just that creep Netanyahu counting on Trump to be stupid enough to help Israel bomb Iran back to the Stone Age.”

I told him there’s more to it than that — there are the Epstein files. The Trump gang has run out of excuses. At this point, even some of Trump’s congressional stooges are calling for release of the unredacted files that might prove his complicity in Epstein’s crimes. Trump is a clown, but he’s hip to what dictators often do when they’re on shaky ground — they start a war and say it’s our patriotic duty to join in and drop everything else.

“Yeah, but that dog don’t hunt this time,” Swamp Rabbit said. “The peeps can deal with being ruled by a dictator, but they ain’t gonna stand for higher gas prices, not for long. Trump’s got them hardcore MAGA dummies on board with him, but nobody else.”

I shook my head, disagreeing. “He bought the billionaires and control of the corporate media. They’ve already neutered CBS, Washington Post and lots of other legitimate news sources.”

“He’ll ease up with the bombing soon, Odd Man. Even Trump don’t want to start no world war.”

“I wouldn’t bet on that,” I said. “Not if it comes down to starting a world war or being kicked out of office and prosecuted.”