I've written about this before with the hope of being
wrong. And I was. Unfortunately, I don't think I was wrong about the
war, only the target, and I fear it's still coming. It's just looking like Trump will attack North Korea, instead.
Makes a lot of sense, really.
Iran, my previously
suspected target, is a Russian ally. My reasoning was that Putin
doesn't give a fuck. I firmly believe that he'd feed us Iran if it
made us happy so that he could concentrate on his own European
aspirations as long as we made some deals regarding the distribution
of oil. Since he has a puppet in the White House that wouldn't really
be much of an issue.
North Korea, however, is looking like a better target.
I'm already seeing Trumpkins on twitter urging military action
against North Korea for “bullying the US” and “building weapons
of mass destruction”. Gee whiz, it all sounds so familiar.
Nevermind that Kim Jong Un isn't really a threat. Trump
needs a boost to those approval ratings. The kind of boost that only
military action can bring. A war turns nationalism into patriotism,
paranoia into prudence, dissent into disloyalty. “You're either
with us or against us!”, they'll cry.
People need to wake up to the danger that is Trump's
administration. They are a desperate and flailing bunch that will do
anything to succeed up to, and including, throwing the country under
the bus. Our fate lies in the hands of folks like Mattis and
McMaster - potential voices of reason within the administration that
could steer Trump away from war.
It's something to hope for in a time
seemingly without hope.
While it is true that Trump's White
House is now clearly a lost cause of scandal and incompetence there
may still be a silver lining:
Trump may be too busy, or even
completely unable, to pursue military actions.
He's in it now and it's showing. He's
coming apart at the seams live on Twitter. His mad ramblings, written
in such obvious panic and desperation, should be more proof than
anyone needs. The way he attempts to fling blame at other people is a
clear indicator. He's compromised, there is proof, and he knows it.
Why else would he be so worried about a wiretap that he'd tell his
tweeps before he asked his advisers?
He's rattled.
Imagine that you're a general watching
this. A general that, not so long ago, watched your
commander-in-chief throw you and your buddies under the fucking bus
for a botched raid that he himself greenlit.
Now you're thinking
about your career, your family, your troops. Are you going to follow
this man into battle? Having served under some questionably suited
NCOs and officers I can tell you that disobeying an unlawful order is
as much a soldier's duty as following a lawful one. I have to hope
that our military commanders are the men that I think they are and
that they should be.
I also don't see Trump getting any
cooperation from our allies at the moment regarding broad military
action - like war with Iran. I've written about my belief that Trump
will attack Iran in much the same way that Bush attacked Iraq;
Looking for things that aren't there and after a dubiously connected
terrorist attack. I can't see that happening with the way things are
going. As with most of my most pessimistic writing... I hope I'm wrong.
The support that he needs seems to be
dwindling. As Republicans continue to play damage control, while they push through measures to make their friends rich, they are
slowly distancing themselves from the Trump administration. Especially now that the Republican healthcare plan has been outed as an absolute disaster. Trump has
no real allies that I can see. Is a politician ever a true ally? A
person motivated solely by their self interest is never going
to burn for you.
It'll be very interesting to see how the Trump administration responds to Rachel Maddow's exposure of Trump's 2005 tax returns. The WH's statement...
is a disaster. How embarrassed are you that this is the kind of statement that Trump's WH releases?
So, what now? They just accused Maddow of breaking the law. Are they going to arrest her? Is this the next iteration of the "Lock Her Up!" movement? Isn't it funny that Trump and his cronies have been saying for this entire time that he can't release his tax returns and then today, when the press gets a portion of them, they are eager to release that portion but only that portion? We need to see those taxes.
What Maddow has now isn't actionable but she's got the right idea. By showing what she has she can show us what we need and why we need it. Hopefully this is only the beginning.
I believe that the president is corrupt and compromised, I believe that initially only his inner circle were fully aware of the extent of this, and I believe that now, as the evidence pours out of the many holes in the HIRMS Trump, people that previously did not believe are starting to. What they will do with this information I have no idea.
Even all the way down here in Texas I can hear Trump and his generals rattling their sabers. Their pockets are full of big shiny toys burning holes in their trousers. Abrams, Apaches, and Spectres. Oh my.
Iran will be the target. It's a country we've had our eyes on it for quite a while. Tensions have been rising in the Persian Gulf and particularly in and around the strait of Hormuz. Last year Iran even threatened it's closure. That's 20% of the world's oil. 85% of which goes to Asia. It'll give Trump control over a large amount of oil, among other seaborne commerce passing through the strait, and a way to hurt China. Sound like something The Orange might be interested in?
He's already surrounded himself with people that would be amenable to this course of action. Flynn has had a hard-on for Iran for a while and already believes that there is a war coming between them and Saudi Arabia. Mattis said two days ago, after Trump announced fresh sanctions against Iran, that they were the "single biggest state sponsor of terrorism in the world.". Bannon has been propagandizing about Iran getting nukes via Breitbart for sometime now, too. Tillerson has his eyes on their oil. Priebus has been screaming bloody murder about the same nukes. The echo chamber is complete and it is calling for an invasion.
Boots on the ground in Iran will be a messy affair. It will be a bloodier occupation that Iraq or Afghanistan. Insurgents will pour in from all sides, seeing it as a last stand of sorts. It'll be a dirty war that will claim many an American life. I don't think it will require a draft... but what bitter irony it would be to have one instituted by a draft dodger.
The Muslim ban was deliberately designed to agitate and isolate Muslims. The Trump administration wants a terrorist attack right now. One is probably coming, real or manufactured, that will somehow lead straight back to Iran. This will be the justification for their war. Hell, even if it doesn't lead back to Iran that won't stop them. Remember Iraq's role in 9/11? There will be a bombing or a shooting. The bomber or shooter will be Iranian. Or know an Iranian. Or have been to Iran. Or seen Iran on TV. Or have an A Flock Of Seagulls CD in his apartment. Something. Anything. That'll be all they need to get the meat grinder going.
As much as I'd like to paint Trump as a deplorable devil of Nixonian proportions with a head full of evil plans I can't. He's a buffoon with a head full of air and hair growth chemicals. This was exposed as the truth when he unwittingly signed an order that placed Bannon on the NSC without even realizing it. He's their patsy. W II. Here to start WWIII. Personally, I think the man has Alzheimer's, as his father before him, and that everyone around him knows it. He's their useful idiot and with him they will rule the world. Or attempt to.
So we're going to war again, America. And, whether they succeed or they fail, we, the people, will suffer.
