Rope-a-Dope
How can a third-tier military like Iran’s bring the mighty U.S. to a standstill? Maybe we can learn from the world of boxing.
In 1974 George Foreman was the undefeated heavyweight champion. Muhammad Ali was attempting to regain his form after losing his titles due to his refusal to be drafted for the Vietnam War. Foreman was a 4-1 favorite to win the fight, dubbed “The Rumble in the Jungle” in Zaire, Africa. Ali adopted his ‘Rope-a-Dope’ tactic — leaning against the ropes, covering up while Foreman pummeled him with body blows for round after round. Foreman exhausted himself pounding Ali, who managed to withstand the blows. By the eighth round, Foreman was so tired from punching that Ali was able to knock him out with a rapid left-right-left-right-left combination.
Iran has survived the 80+ day war with Israel and the U.S. by taking body blow after body blow in the form of bombs and missiles, depleting its enemy’s stock of arms. According to an April 23 article in the New York Times, “The military has fired off more than 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles, roughly 10 times the number it currently buys each year. The Pentagon used more than 1,200 Patriot interceptor missiles in the war, at more than $4 million a pop, and more than 1,000 Precision Strike and ATACMS ground-based missiles, leaving inventories worrisomely low, according to internal Defense Department estimates and congressional officials.” Iran has countered with small boats and drones capable of threatening shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Ali scored what was called the greatest upset of the 20th century. Will Iran do the same in the 21st?