Not Without Incident: Questioning Big Brother's Platitudes

“Wars unfold over time, and no one should pretend to know exactly how long any conflict will last. But the notion that the United States is already trapped in a generational quagmire — after less than two weeks of fighting — is less analysis than panic.”[1]– Ben Shapiro

“There is no instance of a nation benefiting from prolonged warfare.”[2]– Sun Tzu

Before the US invasion of Iraq, the late Dick Cheney said on CBS News that the war would take weeks, not months.[3] He and others in the Bush regime repeated the sentiment that the war would be swift, decisive and over within weeks, and that they would be greeted by the Iraqi people as liberators. In the words of former US Ambassador to the UN, Ken Adelman, crushing Hussein and freeing Iraq “would be a cakewalk.”[4] Of course, it was not, and the US still has forces in Iraq, despite demands from the Iraqi government that they leave.

Similarly, in Afghanistan, as soon as the US withdrew its forces from Kabul, the Taliban, who were handily deposed in December 2001, waltzed right back into Kabul and took over the country again. It was as if the US were never there, or at least, that they never made any tangible gains. However, according to the useful idiots of the permanent regime, the US did not lose in Afghanistan or Iraq. On the issue of Afghanistan, the maniacal John Bolton was asked in a CNN interview if the US had lost in Afghanistan. He said that no, the US did not lose, as to lose, a military must suffer a tactical defeat, and that “You have to be defeated to lose a war. We’ve given up because we’ve lost patience. That’s a sad commentary about the current administration, but it’s not a defeat for the United States.”[5] The notion that it was not a military defeat, but a self-inflicted defeat, is absurd and pervasive in the thinking of the illiberal liberal class. The Biden regime was criticized for the chaotic and disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, with the images of Afghans clinging onto the landing gear of the fleeing US planes being likened to images of Vietnamese people desperately grasping onto US helicopters fleeing Saigon.[6] All the blame, especially from Donald Trump and his acolytes in conservative media, was placed on Joe Biden, not the Bush regime who invaded and occupied Afghanistan in the first place, the Obama regime who continued and even expanded the war, deploying more troops in an attempt to escalate and completely neuter the Taliban before eventually leaving, and then the first Trump regime, who, though he negotiated a withdrawal with the Taliban leadership, but did not have the conviction to rip off the band aid and risk the scathing coverage that Biden faced after he merely fulfilled the withdrawal that had already been agreed on.

Leading up to the Iraq war in 2003, the Bush regime and their lapdogs in the media ensured us that it would last weeks, maybe a few months, but that it would quickly be over, and order and peace would come to the Middle East. Instead, the result was a quagmire that, together with the equally wasteful and sordid sinkhole in Afghanistan, would morally and economically bankrupt America. Rather than reckon with this, many in the conservative elite attack those who propose a new direction for US foreign policy are derided as unpatriotic and dangerous. According to them, we have Iraq war syndrome, not a principled stance on intervention or a different, radical vision for how US foreign policy should be transformed, as a change will either be managed or forced.[7]

In his war on Iran, Trump has not achieved any of the strategic objectives outlined by the White House. According to a press release, their stated objectives are “obliterate Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal and production capability, annihilate its navy, sever its support for terrorist proxies, and ensure the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism never acquires a nuclear weapon.”[8] Firstly, Iran evidently still has a huge arsenal of missiles and drones, its navy was never a threat to anyone, so bragging about this is inane, its support for terror proxies like the Houthis and Hezbollah will not cease. Further, these groups are not a threat to the US. Lastly, on the point of ensuring they never get a nuclear weapon, what the US and Israel have done is motivate the Iranian regime to acquire a nuclear weapon, to guarantee its survival, much like North Korea, who know they will never be attacked because of their vast nuclear arsenal. The lesson is that having nuclear weapons ensures that your regime will not be overthrown by the US.

It is the US that, through its own imperial folly and adventurism around the world, created an environment where nuclear armament is seen as the only guarantor of security from unruly and rogue great powers. Even states that are not adversaries of the US, like South Korea and Japan, are seriously pondering whether to acquire nuclear weapons.[9] Again, the US is waging a war that will result in more dangerous world, not one that is safer or more peaceful. We see now that the US cannot keep to a peace accord, as it is striking Iran again, in response to strikes by Iran. Trump has declared that the Iranians are “scum”, and he seems to have gone back on seeking a peace deal. The messianic forces driving Trump and his regime will not just perpetuate the war with Iran, but they will lead to the destruction of the US empire and a forced retreat from the Middle East. Despite signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), strikes between the US and Iran have resumed, and judging by Trump’s comments on the Iranian regime, they are unlikely to cease anytime soon.

Just like Bolton and his ilk do not see the war in Afghanistan as a defeat for the US, the Iran war will not be seen as a loss for the US, even though it is likely a catalyst, one of several, that signals the undeniable decline of the US empire. It is stunning that many MAGA pundits and Trump loyalists can see events in the Middle East and with a straight face claim that the US is winning and that the war is a masterful triumph, part of Trump’s America First, peace through strength agenda. The likes of Shapiro, Mark Levin, Will Chamberlain, and Sebastian Gorka will never admit any defeat or catastrophe, and to do so, in their minds, is anti-American and ani-Western.[10] They have simply parroted and repeated the claim that the war is won, over and over again, as Hannah Arendt argues in Origins of Totalitarianism, the permanent lie, which is what the Trump regime speaks in, differs from the usual lie because it is repeated, even if disproven or overtly preposterous, until it is just assumed to be the truth.[11] We see this all over the regime narrative on the Iran war, from the claim that the US has been at war with Iran for 47 years, since the 1979 revolution, to the idea that Iran was days or weeks away from getting a nuclear weapon, we have been bombarded with nonsense, contradictory statements, and apocalyptic end times rhetoric likening the fight against Iran as a holy war.[12]

A major problem with this war and the narrative on it is still that it is totally incoherent. In the White House press release referenced earlier, the objectives are introduced as “clear and unwavering”[13] When has this ever been the case? Since its beginnings, Operation Epic Fury has been a complete enigma. Trump, Pete Hegseth, and his other cronies constantly contradict each other. Before, freeing the Iranian people and overthrowing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was a stated goal of the war, and Trump, before he launched the war, said on Truth Social to the Iranians protesting against the regime that “help was on the way”[14] Even now, some advocates of the war are calling for the Iranians to be armed, like Levin, who said on FOX News with Sean Hannity that the Iranians should be trained, supported, and armed by the US military, as if this has ever worked.[15] Did it work in Afghanistan, where during the Cold War the Mujahedeen were trained and armed by the CIA to fight against the invading Soviet forces, after which the Mujahadeen became the Taliban, and then after deposing them in 2001, the US spent years training and supporting the Afghan army, only for them to throw down their weapons as soon as the US left and allowed the Taliban to swoop in? Did this work in Syria, where, although Bashar al-Assad was eventually overthrown, a regime led by and staffed by jihadists has taken over, slaughtering Christian minorities and imposing a tyranny?[16] Has this worked in the Sahel region in Africa, where the US military has trained multiple mercenaries who go to their home countries and oust the government?[17] Time and again the war on terror has created more terror, and as I argued in a previous essay, the approach the US has taken to the Middle East, first in the Bush regime and now to an extremity in the Trump regime, will only stoke the very militants they are claiming to be fighting and annihilating.

Contrary to what the Trump regime and MAGA voices are saying, the war in Iran is not, in the words of Dave Rubin “the war to end all wars”, echoing Trump’s claim that the US is engaged not in a war, but in an excursion so that they do not have to go to war.[18] The permanent regime will find a new monster to slay. Turkey is likely next on the list. Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet declared in February that “Turkey is the new Iran”, and he argued that Turkey is trying to “encircle Israel” by turning the Gulf States against it.[19] If not Turkey, then a new enemy will be conjured up, along with reasons for overthrowing their government and bombing them into the Stone Age. Further, how can the Iran war be a war that will end all wars? The US is at war all over the globe. Will the end, if it comes, of the Iran war bring with it an end to wars in Somalia or Nigeria? Will it end Israel’s multiple wars in Lebanon, Gaza, and Syria? Of course it will not, as peace is bad for the war economy, which is what the US has become. Until the permanent regime is resisted and starved of their power, wars will continue. A society driven by death and destruction can only ever end in ruins. Many in the Trump regime and conservative elite would consider themselves pro-life. Although this mainly refers to the issue of abortion and now self-assisted suicide, their foreign policy positions contradict this. They are overtly pro-death. The ruling class is titillated and excited by slaughter and excess. Countries like Iran are a playground for them. Trump will leave office in 2028 and pass on the Iran war, along with the others, to the next president, who will gleefully take their turn at ‘playing’. Trump promised to end wars and to not start more endless wars, which, to be fair he held to in his first term. However, he has become what he claimed to despise and be the opposite of in his campaigns. We are like the animals who peer into the window at the end of Animal Farm to see the pigs who led the rebellion against the human farmers dining with them, becoming them.[20] As the animals said, the pigs and the farmers were indistinguishable from each other. Similarly, Trump and his goons mirror the entrenched oppressors they said they were going to replace.

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[1] Ben Shapiro, “The 3 Big Lies about the Iran War,” The North State Journal, March 20, 2026, https://nsjonline.com/article/2026/03/shapiro-the-3-big-lies-about-the-iran-war/.

[2] Tzu Sun et al., The Art of War, 29. Aufl, Oxford Paperbacks (Oxford Univ. Press, 1971).

[3] Face the Nation, From the Archives: VP Dick Cheney on Potential 2003 Invasion of Iraq, 2024, 22:46, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl78T15LQCc.

[4] Fred Smoler, “Cakewalk: Getting It Wrong,” Dissent Magazine, 2003, https://dissentmagazine.org/article/cakewalk-getting-it-wrong/.

[5] Quint Forgey, “Bolton: U.S. Didn’t Lose War in Afghanistan – POLITICO,” News, POLITICO, July 14, 2021, https://www.politico.com/news/2021/07/16/john-bolton-war-afghanistan-withdrawal-499815.

[6] H. D. S. Greenway, “From Saigon to Kabul, a Half Century of American Misadventures,” Responsible Statecraft, October 20, 2021, https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2021/10/20/from-saigon-to-kabul-a-half-century-of-american-misadventures/.

[7] Ben Shapiro, “How Trump Finally Buried the Iraq Syndrome,” Thealpenanews.Com, January 12, 2026, https://www.thealpenanews.com/opinion/2026/01/how-trump-finally-buried-the-iraq-syndrome/; Byron York, “Trump, Forever Wars, and Iraq Syndrome,” Washington Examiner, March 3, 2026, https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/daily-memo/4478016/trump-forever-wars-iraq-syndrome-iran-strikes/; Leah Schroeder, “Trump’s Quest to Kick America’s ‘Iraq War Syndrome’ | Responsible Statecraft,” Responsible Statecraft, January 14, 2026, https://responsiblestatecraft.org/us-invasion-venezuela/; Noah Rothman, “The Maduro Raid Was a Strategic Victory and a Tactical Success,” The National Review, January 5, 2026, https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/01/the-maduro-raid-was-a-strategic-victory-and-a-tactical-success/.

[8] The White House, “President Trump’s Clear and Unchanging Objectives Drive Decisive Success Against Iranian Regime,” The White House, April 1, 2026, https://www.whitehouse.gov/releases/2026/04/president-trumps-clear-and-unchanging-objectives-drive-decisive-success-against-iranian-regime/.

[9] Wakana Mukai, Japan’s Non-Nuclear Norm under Pressure | East Asia Forum, Japan, April 29, 2026, https://eastasiaforum.org/2026/04/29/japans-non-nuclear-norm-under-pressure/; Joshua Kurlantzick, “Why U.S. Allies in Asia Are Chasing Nuclear Energy—And Eyeing Nuclear Weapons | Council on Foreign Relations,” April 6, 2026, https://www.cfr.org/articles/why-u-s-allies-in-asia-are-chasing-nuclear-energy-and-eyeing-nuclear-weapons.

[10] Bernard-Henri Levy, “The Iran War and the Anti-American Reflex – WSJ,” Wall Stree Journal, May 21, 2026, https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-iran-war-and-the-anti-american-reflex-d15abb8f.

[11] Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, Penguin Modern Classics (Penguin Classics, 2017).

[12] Steve Benen, “Why Republicans Keep Claiming the War in Iran Began 47 Years Ago, Not Two Weeks Ago,” MS NOW, March 13, 2026, https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/why-republicans-keep-claiming-the-war-in-iran-began-47-years-ago-not-two-weeks-ago; Mark Dubowitz and Trey Gowdy, “Iranian Regime Has Ruled the Country ‘Brutally’ for 47 Years:,” Fox News, July 20, 2026, https://www.foxnews.com/video/6401598964112.

[13] The White House, “President Trump’s Clear and Unchanging Objectives Drive Decisive Success Against Iranian Regime.”

[14] Patrick Wintour and Andrew Roth, “Trump Promises ‘Help Is on Its Way’ and Tells Iranians to ‘Keep Protesting,’” World News, The Guardian, January 13, 2026, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/13/trump-promises-iran-help-tells-iranians-keep-protesting.

[15] Sean Hannity and Mark Levin, “Mark Levin: Arm the Iranian People and Give Them a Chance against the Regime,” Fox News, May 9, 2026, https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395025138112.

[16] Maggie Michael, “Syrian Forces Massacred 1,500 Alawites. The Chain of Command Led to Damascus.,” Investigations, Reuters, June 30, 2025, https://www.reuters.com/investigations/syrian-forces-massacred-1500-alawites-chain-command-led-damascus-2025-06-30/.

[17] Nick Turse, “15 US-Backed Officers Had Hand in 12 West African Coups | Responsible Statecraft,” Responsible Statecraft, August 23, 2023, https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2023/08/23/the-us-hand-in-africas-coups/; Nick Turse, “After Training African Coup Leaders, Pentagon Blames Russia for African Coups,” The Intercept, June 6, 2024, https://theintercept.com/2024/06/06/africa-coups-pentagon-blames-russia/.

[18] Dave Rubin Clips II (Parody) – Retired Jan.20/2025 [@DaveClips], “Dave Rubin: ‘this is the war to end all wars’ https://t.co/AEwrko7wwx,” Tweet, Twitter, March 8, 2026, https://x.com/DaveClips/status/2030679301218357688.

[19] Bobby Ghosh, “No, Turkey Is Not the New Iran,” Foreign Policy, September 1, 2026, https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/03/09/israel-turkey-iran-erdogan-netanyahu-threat/.

[20] George Orwell, Animal Farm, Penguin Books – Great Orwell (Penguin Books, 2014).

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References

Arendt, Hannah. The Origins of Totalitarianism. Penguin Modern Classics. Penguin Classics, 2017.

Ben Shapiro. “How Trump Finally Buried the Iraq Syndrome.” Thealpenanews.Com, January 12, 2026. https://www.thealpenanews.com/opinion/2026/01/how-trump-finally-buried-the-iraq-syndrome/.

Ben Shapiro. “The 3 Big Lies about the Iran War.” The North State Journal, March 20, 2026. https://nsjonline.com/article/2026/03/shapiro-the-3-big-lies-about-the-iran-war/.

Benen, Steve. “Why Republicans Keep Claiming the War in Iran Began 47 Years Ago, Not Two Weeks Ago.” MS NOW, March 13, 2026. https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/why-republicans-keep-claiming-the-war-in-iran-began-47-years-ago-not-two-weeks-ago.

Bernard-Henri Levy. “The Iran War and the Anti-American Reflex – WSJ.” Wall Stree Journal, May 21, 2026. https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-iran-war-and-the-anti-american-reflex-d15abb8f.

Face the Nation. From the Archives: VP Dick Cheney on Potential 2003 Invasion of Iraq. 2024. 22:46. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl78T15LQCc.

Ghosh, Bobby. “No, Turkey Is Not the New Iran.” Foreign Policy, September 1, 2026. https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/03/09/israel-turkey-iran-erdogan-netanyahu-threat/.

H. D. S. Greenway. “From Saigon to Kabul, a Half Century of American Misadventures.” Responsible Statecraft, October 20, 2021. https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2021/10/20/from-saigon-to-kabul-a-half-century-of-american-misadventures/.

Joshua Kurlantzick. “Why U.S. Allies in Asia Are Chasing Nuclear Energy—And Eyeing Nuclear Weapons | Council on Foreign Relations.” April 6, 2026. https://www.cfr.org/articles/why-u-s-allies-in-asia-are-chasing-nuclear-energy-and-eyeing-nuclear-weapons.

Leah Schroeder. “Trump’s Quest to Kick America’s ‘Iraq War Syndrome’ | Responsible Statecraft.” Responsible Statecraft, January 14, 2026. https://responsiblestatecraft.org/us-invasion-venezuela/.

Mark Dubowitz and Trey Gowdy. “Iranian Regime Has Ruled the Country ‘Brutally’ for 47 Years:” Fox News, July 20, 2026. https://www.foxnews.com/video/6401598964112.

Michael, Maggie. “Syrian Forces Massacred 1,500 Alawites. The Chain of Command Led to Damascus.” Investigations. Reuters, June 30, 2025. https://www.reuters.com/investigations/syrian-forces-massacred-1500-alawites-chain-command-led-damascus-2025-06-30/.

Mukai, Wakana. Japan’s Non-Nuclear Norm under Pressure | East Asia Forum. Japan. April 29, 2026. https://eastasiaforum.org/2026/04/29/japans-non-nuclear-norm-under-pressure/.

Nick Turse. “15 US-Backed Officers Had Hand in 12 West African Coups | Responsible Statecraft.” Responsible Statecraft, August 23, 2023. https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2023/08/23/the-us-hand-in-africas-coups/.

Noah Rothman. “The Maduro Raid Was a Strategic Victory and a Tactical Success.” The National Review, January 5, 2026. https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/01/the-maduro-raid-was-a-strategic-victory-and-a-tactical-success/.

Orwell, George. Animal Farm. Penguin Books – Great Orwell. Penguin Books, 2014.

Quint Forgey. “Bolton: U.S. Didn’t Lose War in Afghanistan – POLITICO.” News. POLITICO, July 14, 2021. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/07/16/john-bolton-war-afghanistan-withdrawal-499815.

Sean Hannity and Mark Levin. “Mark Levin: Arm the Iranian People and Give Them a Chance against the Regime.” Fox News, May 9, 2026. https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395025138112.

Smoler, Fred. “Cakewalk: Getting It Wrong.” Dissent Magazine, 2003. https://dissentmagazine.org/article/cakewalk-getting-it-wrong/.

Sun, Tzu, Samuel B. Griffith, Liddell Hart, and Henry Basil. The Art of War. 29. Aufl. Oxford Paperbacks. Oxford Univ. Press, 1971.

The White House. “President Trump’s Clear and Unchanging Objectives Drive Decisive Success Against Iranian Regime.” The White House, April 1, 2026. https://www.whitehouse.gov/releases/2026/04/president-trumps-clear-and-unchanging-objectives-drive-decisive-success-against-iranian-regime/.

Turse, Nick. “After Training African Coup Leaders, Pentagon Blames Russia for African Coups.” The Intercept, June 6, 2024. https://theintercept.com/2024/06/06/africa-coups-pentagon-blames-russia/.

Wintour, Patrick, and Andrew Roth. “Trump Promises ‘Help Is on Its Way’ and Tells Iranians to ‘Keep Protesting.’” World News. The Guardian, January 13, 2026. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/13/trump-promises-iran-help-tells-iranians-keep-protesting.

York, Byron. “Trump, Forever Wars, and Iraq Syndrome.” Washington Examiner, March 3, 2026. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/daily-memo/4478016/trump-forever-wars-iraq-syndrome-iran-strikes/.