It's Not Our War
Reaffirming America First amidst the cries for greater American involvement in the Middle East
The recent terrorist attacks against Israel constitute a horrifying tragedy.
On October 7, Hamas militants conducted a large-scale incursion into Israel from land, air, and sea. Hamas’ outright evil and butchery were on full display during the attack as hundreds of innocent Israelis, many women and children included, were murdered, raped, and kidnapped. In addition, thousands of rockets were launched into civilian areas, which resulted in more innocent deaths.
In response, Israel has promised to unleash unfathomable hell on Hamas, which is located in the Gaza Strip, a densely populated area of over two million people. At the time of this writing, Israel has orchestrated numerous air attacks in Gaza and is expected to commence a ground invasion of the area very soon to eradicate Hamas once and for all. Thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed thus far by Israeli military operations, and tens of thousands more are projected to die if Israel carries out a broad-scale invasion.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are essentially stuck with nowhere to go. To the south of Gaza, Egypt has taken unprecedented measures to secure and close its border to prevent any migrants from pouring in. Understandably, Israel isn’t letting anybody in either. Crammed in a tightly packed area amongst Hamas terrorists with nowhere to escape, masses of innocent Palestinians are facing a war of literal hell.
Also exacerbating the current crisis is the possibility of the war expanding beyond Israel and Gaza. Tensions have been soaring between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group in Lebanon that has already involved itself in the war, albeit not to a full extent. Most notably, the two powers clashed in the 2006 Lebanon War, which turned out to be indecisive and costly for both sides. Hezbollah currently harbors over 100,000 sophisticated rockets aimed directly at Israel from the north and has tens of thousands of fighters ready to fight.
Expectedly, the war drums have also intensified between Israel and Iran as well, as many U.S. and Israeli officials have pinned the blame on Tehran for the terrorist attacks last Saturday.
Though tensions are soaring, these powers are not yet involved in a total war against Israel. If these forces were to join the war, Israel would find itself in an existential war to protect its very existence. Needless to say, Netanyahu’s emergency government would do well not to underestimate the possible formation of an anti-Israel alliance of Arab countries if the war expands.
So, what should America’s response be to the present situation in the Middle East? Well, if you ask Senator Lindsey Graham, the United States is “involved in a religious war” and should instigate a conflict with Iran by bombing Tehran’s oil refineries. GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley described the attack on Israel as “an attack on America” and additionally advocated for Israel and, presumably, the Biden administration, to “finish” Iran.
Besides the obvious observation that both Graham and Haley are bloodthirsty and tireless interventionists with riches to extract from the war business, their comments are nonetheless absurd and dangerous. Contrary to their assertions, this is not America’s war to fight. An attack on Israel, a foreign nation, does not translate whatsoever to an attack on America, and one of the most unwise policies one could enact right now would be picking a fight with Iran.
Moreover, it is simply unconscionable for the United States to further entangle itself in the Middle East through yet another war while the American people are dealing with massive, seemingly unsolvable problems at home. Continually sending billions to foreign countries and pushing for more war makes it abundantly clearer that American politicians place the national security of Israel and Ukraine above that of America.
Put simply, they love the empire and not the nation. If Graham, Haley, and all the other liberal internationalists stood to protect the interests of the latter, they would spend the majority of their political time addressing the issues that are plaguing ordinary Americans, such as rampant crime, widespread drug addiction, economic insecurity, illegal immigration, and an increasingly hostile federal government hell-bent on persecuting its political enemies. But as Mike Pence pointed out, these issues are not their “concern.”
Alas, the war between Israel and Hamas garners far more attention from America’s ruling elite than the domestic problems negatively affecting American citizens.
But this needn’t be the case. Foreign wars taking place thousands of miles away from America’s shores shouldn’t take precedence over vast domestic problems. Israel is more than capable of defending itself and is certainly up to the task of defeating Hamas without direct American involvement via boots on the ground. More than anything, American leaders should instead focus their attention on securing and defending the Southern border, which has been left utterly defenseless.
This may sound like common sense, but the insane regime we live under today favors anything but common sense. According to a recent report from The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. is planning to deploy an estimated 2,000 troops to the region to support Israel in its war against Hamas. Though the troops “aren't intended to serve in a combat role,” the move will nevertheless put them in a dangerous environment.
Sending American troops to the region increases the possibility of an American-Iranian conflict that could easily spiral out of control, as well as potentially expanding the size and scope of Israel’s war. It is in America’s best and long-term interests to avoid a war with Iran, and it might be in Israel’s interests to resist American involvement to prevent further madness from ensuing.
By all accounts, this war will be an immensely devastating one. As Israel continues its operations aimed at decimating Hamas, many innocent Palestinians will die. In turn, violent hatred toward Israel will surely flare up amongst Muslims in the region and lead to further destruction and more countries entering the war. This is all the more reason for America to stay out and instead push for a ceasefire.
Now is a time to put America First and work to contain war, not spread it. As corrupt political figures attempt to thrust the U.S. into another costly war, it is ever more important to push back and advocate for realism and restraint.
If we have learned anything over the past two decades, it is that foreign adventures abroad, particularly in the Middle East, do not protect core American interests. For far too long, wars have been waged not for the protection of the nation but to advance the material interests of the empire. Becoming further embroiled in yet another Middle Eastern war will continue this tradition, at great expense to the American people.
Great article!
I feel like I sort of glossed over all the reasons it's in America's interest to stay out of this war when I wrote my piece, but it's definitely an important case to make. You did a great job of explaining the non-interventionist position.
This is not our fight and unless someone attacks America, we should not be at war with anyone. At the point of 33 trillion dollars in national debt, we simply cannot afford it.