longer.blue

For those pointing out that these Lego-style videos are Iranian propaganda — yes, they are. They’re created by an Iranian cartoonist, Mahdi Hemmat, and pushed through state-aligned accounts. I'm aware of that. Here's the thing, though: in the case of Trump and this current war, they don't have to invent much of anything to make them land. Like all good satire, they exaggerate. They stylize. They sharpen the edges. But a lot of what they're working from is already out there — the kind of behavior, decisions, and patterns people are watching in real time. That's why they hit. Not because they're "true" in some pure sense, and not because they're trustworthy — but because they're built on recognizable moments that don't require much fabrication to turn into something absurd. Take the recurring issue of massive market moves immediately before major announcements. Large trades going in minutes beforehand, then unwound shortly after, generating enormous profits. That's not something a cartoonist has to invent — it's something serious enough that international outlets are looking into it. So no, I'm not under the illusion that this is neutral content. It isn't. But it is effective. And yes — a lot of it is genuinely funny. Waking up to one of these and getting a laugh out of it doesn't mean you've been "converted." It just means you recognize satire when you see it — even when it's coming from the other side. If your only takeaway is "it's propaganda," you're missing why it works — and why it's getting shared.