It is easy to predict what will happen as the United States chooses to start another overseas war. It's easy because we've done it so many times before and once more we have chosen to ignore the lessons of our previous foreign invasions. Here are eleven predictions we can count on:
1) Our military will kill a lot of people, a great many of whom will be civilians.
2) Citizens of the territories we invade will hate us for it and we will make new enemies, many of whom will be easy fodder for terrorist recruitment.
3) Many American soldiers will die or be traumatized by war and come home broken in body and spirit. We will be paying for their care (and aberrant behavior) for many decades.
4) The wars will cost more than they are supposed to and will deplete the U.S. treasury of billions--if not trillions--of dollars.
5) Despite the cost, certain segments in our society--weapons manufacturers, the Pentagon, security companies, cable news networks among them--will profit greatly.
6) The weapons we provide to our friendly rebels will eventually be used against us.
7) We will have other nations as allies, but the U.S. will provide more than 95% of the fighting and funding.
8) The American people will be lied to and manipulated with fear, thus giving the government further opportunities to spy upon or restrict the Constitutional rights of its citizens.
9) If we eventually provoke a terrorist counterattack on our soil, Americans can kiss their remaining freedoms goodbye.
10) Our stated objectives will fail to be accomplished.
11) Government propagandists and supporters of the war will try to convince us that we are winning.
You can count on these predictions coming true, because they always do when we start wars overseas--Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq being prime examples. But the massive military-industrial-security-media complex and their cheerleaders cannot resist. So hang on--because here we go again.
6
5
3
