here we go again

We knew Trump’s monumental humiliation on No Kings Day and his barely attended pathetic excuse for a military parade that was supposed to inspire fear and envy in the rest of the world coupled with the obvious lack of respect he received at the G7 summit in Canada would have repercussions because Trump never lets the least slight slide. His obsession with winning a Nobel Peace Prize and his bottomless need for respect and adulation apparently culminated in the conviction that if he bombed Iran into oblivion thereby saving the world from possible annihilation if Iran ever actually produced a nuclear weapon it would result in both. Either that or, and more likely, bombing Iran was a big fuck you, I’ll show you who’s powerful. Trump bombs Iran and then declares now is the time for peace, in all caps, or else. He thinks he’s shown them who’s boss, that he’s won. Iran’s nuclear ambitions destroyed by me! Praise me, I saved everyone, now give me my peace prize! Iran’s all, not even Bozo. This is not over. Wars are easy to start, hard to stop. Just ask George Bush the younger. 

In an interview Secretary of State Marco Rubio, when asked why would Iran agree to a peace deal when the US already pulled out of the treaty Iran had been abiding by that limited their nuclear ambitions and then launched surprise attacks against Iran, responded “The ones that shouldn’t be trusted are the Iranians.” Same interview or maybe a different one he said they weren’t looking for a war with Iran but if they retaliated it would be the worst mistake they ever made. Apparently to this administration bombing a sovereign nation to stop them from developing a nuclear bomb after withdrawing from a treaty that was preventing them from doing so isn’t a declaration of war, but that country retaliating is. Trump will claim that Iran started this particular conflict when it was Israel who started the escalation when they started bombing Iran directly. 

Iran supports militant groups in other countries fighting what they consider oppression and we call them terrorists but so do we, so do other nations. The only difference is we don't call the ones we support terrorists. Whatever the nomenclature the goal is the same, to support those who are likely to get us what we want through the use of violence. Israel calls Iran a terrorist nation, Iran calls Israel a terrorist nation. Israel bombs hospitals, schools, residential areas, and aid distribution sites in Gaza and nobody blinks an eye. Iran bombed one hospital in Israel and is accused of war crimes. Netanyahu ignored the intel that an attack by Hamas was imminent in response to the apartheid conditions and terrorist tactics used by the IDF in Gaza and the West Bank and is using it as an excuse to wipe Gaza off the map. Less than 2,000 Israelis have been killed in the current conflict compared to almost 60,000 Palestinians. Israel restricts how much aid is allowed into Gaza if any at all and the people are starving. The US is apparently fine with that because Trump wants to develop the Gaza coast. The line between defense and terrorism is very fuzzy and depends on which side of the line you're standing on. 

So now, here we are, embroiled in another possible war started by the ‘no new wars’ president, unless of course he feels humiliated and needs to whip someone’s ass to make himself feel better, a draft dodging man who calls those killed in action or held prisoner losers. We shouldn’t be surprised, you know, war is what we do. This country has been at war for almost every year of its existence and usually more than one military action at a time. In fact I don’t think there has been a single year during my lifetime, and I’m 75 years old, that the US has not been involved in some kind of military operation all over the world including four major wars…Korean War, VietNam War, war in Afghanistan, and war in Iraq…and we are the biggest exporter of military weaponry. 

What happens in Iran remains to be seen, just how long and deep this military action will go or if it sparks a wider conflict. It puts Trump at odds with his handler Putin since Iran and Russia are aligned and Putin is not about to abandon his stronghold in the Middle East considering he already lost Syria any more than he is going to give up Ukraine and his ambitions towards all of Eastern Europe. Destroying Iran’s ability to build nuclear weapons doesn’t necessarily mean they will never have any if Russia wants them to.

So, yeah, war is what we do. War is what humans do. The entirety of human history is war and conflict and conquest creating one great empire after another. My theory is that being the apex predator we have nothing to keep us in check but ourselves, that we are our own predator. It doesn't seem to be working though. The planet is groaning with unrestrained population growth and competition for resources.