Could Trumpâs Iran âexcursionâ be a bigger global turning point than Vietnam?
The far shorter Middle East war has rapidly revealed the strategic weakness of US firepower in an interconnected world In a 1965 speech justifying the war in Vietnam, Lyndon B Johnson argued that the goal was to ensure âevery country can shape its own destinyâ since only in such a world could the US secure its own freedom. However, he also admitted âsuch were infirmities of man that force must often precede reason, and the waste of war, the works of peaceâ. It was the kind of elegant justification of the countryâs moral mission to which successive US presidential speechwriters have turned at times of war. Assured by limitless military superiority and filled with such noble intent, US presidents have repeatedly been lured into launching wars only to find themselves confounded, ensnared and then broken by their inability to overpower an inferior opponent they wholly misjudged. It seemed safe to assume that this was a fate that would never befall Donald Trump. He was implacably opposed to endless wars that seemed disconnected to the everyday lives of his supporters. He would never equate military power with military victory. Yet Trumpâs âlittle excursion to Iranâ, judg
Source: For the complete article, please visit the original source link below.
