Hey there, it's Joe. Happy Saturday.

The headlines have been talking a lot about a stalled Iran peace deal and the Strait of Hermuz.

And the TPOFAM has been asking for a little bit more context

on the straight and why a small waterway is standing between the U.S. and Middle Eastern Peace.

Come along, folks. Let's take a shallow dive.

But first, here's your quote of the day. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is

given us, J.R.R. Tolkien. Let's start at the top.

What is the Strait of Hermuz?

We thought you'd never ask.

A Strait is a narrow body of water that connects two larger bodies of water, typically used

for shipping and navigation.

The Strait of Hermuz connects the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman.

It's only 21 nautical miles wide at its narrowest point,

bordered on the north by Iran and on the south by the UAE and Oman.

Now the real question, why does the U.S. care so much about it? Before the Iran-U.S. conflict,

over 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas pass through that straight. That's roughly

$600 billion in energy trade every year, and anywhere from 80 to 130 ships trafficked the strait daily.

So, it's not dramatic to say Hermuz is the most important maritime choke point.

Think a passageway with no good alternative route in the world.

Controlling that straight is leverage worth its weight in crude oil. Iran knows that,

and a key part of their military strategy has been to choke off traffic in the strait. Those upticking

gas prices? It's because oil trade through that strait has decreased to a trickle. Supply goes down,

...