I agree -- China and the US are ultimately rivals in the sense that the US and UK post-1812 have been rivals. The saddest part about the bad relationship with

I agree -- China and the US are ultimately rivals in the sense that the US and UK post-1812 have been rivals. The saddest part about the bad relationship with Iran is it largely stems from one stupid protectionist-for-British-industry decision made in the immediate post-WW2 period, and then a shitty US ally picked due to the Cold War. Otherwise, the US and Iran would probably have been allies to roughly the extent the US and Israel have been allies.