"And what if the gravest costs are not borne by them at all? This question has become particularly urgent since the advent of armed drones, which, in their capacity to inflict death without risking it, have changed the elemental moral calculus assumed in warfare. A country that does not incur much human cost from its wars is a country that does not think much about them at all. “The absence of casualties isn’t a bad thing,” Kreps said, “but what it does is make Americans not think twice about how they are spending their resources.”

This became evident during Obama’s presidency, as his administration attempted to shift the war on terror away from the Bush-era counterinsurgencies and into a more amorphous, drone-centric program of counterterrorism. Critics have long contended that this was a perverse consequence of mounting concern over the civil liberties violations of the Bush years: a replacement of black sites and Guantánamo detentions with ghostly assassinations by increasingly autonomous airborne machines, the particulars of which would remain far from the view, and consciences, of the president’s supporters.

It was a bargain that many of those supporters were tacitly willing to accept. Polls during Obama’s presidency found that even as large majorities of Americans opposed staying in Afghanistan, most also approved of the administration’s drone strikes — even when a plurality of respondents couldn’t name the countries being targeted."

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/04/magazine/iran-war-trump-drones-ai.html

#USA #Militarism #War #Warmongers #Imperialism #DroneStrikes

"More than a month into the second U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, two facts have become clear.

First, the conflict is now fundamentally about the future of the Strait of Hormuz. Second, the dilemma of the Strait of Hormuz has no military solution. The risks of any operation to open the channel far exceed what American planners likely imagined, and the odds of a decisive success appear low. As French President Emmanuel Macron recently said, “This was never an option we supported, because it is unrealistic.”

Iranian officials have long warned that, in the event of an attack, the strait could be closed. Iran has now imposed significant restrictions on transit through Hormuz and even targeted several vessels attempting to pass through it. This effort has demonstrated Iran’s enormous leverage over the international economy. Iranian leaders are now looking to turn this tactical victory into long-term leverage.

Trump has miscalculated again. He is trying to win the battle; Iran is focused on winning the war. In Tehran’s plan, the strait is not a tool to end the war, but a permanent fixture for its aftermath."

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/strait-of-hormuz-and-iran/

#Iran #USA #StraitOfHormuz #War #Militarism

RE: https://mastodon.social/@Jinjirrie/116348869768770324

The US Americans don't seem to care too much that their government is allied with an indicted war criminal, and is committing war crimes itself. This is like sleep-walking into a nightmare. #fascism #democracy #militarism #vampires.

Iran Can’t Hit U.S. Directly—So It’s Hitting Everyone Around It

Iran strikes Gulf nations, oil hubs, and U.S. bases across the region. The result: rising oil prices, global instability, and a war spreading through allies.

Everyone thought George W Bush and his cabal of misfits and ideologues were idiots. There is always something, or someone, worse:

"Pete Hegseth, the U.S. defense secretary, has asked the American people to pray “every day, on bended knee” for a military victory in the Middle East “in the name of Jesus Christ.””
#religion #Trumpism #Iran #Easter #nihilism #militarism #ethics #morality #evil #idiots
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/03/world/middleeast/pope-iran-war.html

RE: https://mefi.social/@MissConstrue/116341951832266597

The little train has jumped the rails, but still it rolls along. We are witnessing a test. How long can the society coast along on autopilot? Longer than I would have guessed. But something deep within says back at me that it can't go on forever. This too, shall pass. (His cravat seems a little loose.) His father was a high school football coach, and his mother did business motivational work. He graduated from Princeton. A caricature of the mad war monger. Not the anti-Christ, but plays one on t.v.?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_trials #militarism #fascism #vampires

Trump announced to cut any social spending for day care, Medicare or Medicaid on the federal level because all funds have to be funneled to the military for "protecting the country".

This certainly reminds of a protection racket or other forms of kleptocratic wealth accumulation Mafia style.
The plundering of social budgets is part and purpose of imperalistic warfare deemed to leave people in need to the cold of misery, famine and death. It's nothing but class war from above, and hopefully US Americans will soon wake up to never repeat the folly of voting for leaders like sheep chosing those who will lead them to the slaughtering block.

One important lesson to be learned from the ongoing wars and the inceasing dwindling of social welfare is to fight militarism and imperialism whereever it rears its bloody head.

7.38

#war #austerity #militarism #Trump
#imperialism

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIU9ifRZDhU

“The Trump administration won’t say and prefers the cost not be discussed.

The United States spent an estimated $28.7 billion in the first two weeks of the Iran war, or $2.1 billion a day on average. This is based on my analysis of officials’ statements, federal procurement and operations data, and reporting on military deployments and armament use. This estimate refers only to direct war costs — near-term expenses for military operations, munitions, and the like — and not indirect costs, which include broader and longer-term factors like economic impact and veterans’ care.

This might be a higher estimate than you’ve seen elsewhere. Those estimates are too low. This one could be too.”

https://jacobin.com/2026/04/trump-war-iran-cost-childcare

#USA #Trump #Iran #War #Militarism