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A Nation Unmade by War by Tom Engelhardt, America in decline, America’s 45th President, Authoritarianism, Global War on Terror, TomDispatch, USA National Security State
United States Counterterror War Locations 2015-2017
Photo Credit: TomDispatch
Embarrassing spectacle. Treasonous. National security crisis. These are some of the reactions to the Helsinki Summit between Presidents Trump and Putin on July 16, 2018. Some among us believe that Trump is responsible for all that’s wrong with America. Not so, Tom Engelhardt reminds us in his latest book, A Nation Unmade by War (Haymarket Books, May 2018).
In A Nation Unmade by War, Engelhardt focuses on “a nation increasingly unsettled and transformed by spreading wars to which most of its citizens were, at best, only half paying attention.” He views Trump’s election as “part of the costs of those wars come home” and envisages that America’s 45th president “might preside over the most precipitous decline of a truly dominant power in history, one only recently considered at the height of its glory.”
When the Soviet Union imploded in 1991, the United States became the sole superpower. Dreams of creating a planetary Pax Americana led to the build-up of this country’s military might. The realization of that dream came on September 11, 2001, with al-Qaeda’s attack on the World Trade Center, and the subsequent launch of America’s Global War on Terror. This never-ending war has now consumed an estimated $5.6 trillion from September 2001 through fiscal year 2018 (Costs of War Project, Brown University, November 2017).
Meanwhile, the basic needs of millions of Americans have gone unattended, hollowing out parts of the heartland. Mounting college student loan debt has jeopardized the future of young people. The country’s infrastructure is crumbling. A dysfunctional two-party political system has added to the chaos. The rise of the National Security State, with its militarized police and border forces, has become the de facto fourth branch of government.
A one-percent economy, a one-percent society, and a one-percent political system have paved the way for a one-percent government under Donald Trump – a celebrity business mogul with potential for authoritarianism.
“Trump is a message, a warning of the first order, and if that were all he were, he would just be an inadvertent teacher about the nature of our American world and we could indeed thank him and do our best to move on,” the author observes.
But we cannot ignore Trump. He has access to our nuclear stockpile. What’s more, as a climate change denier, he believes he can make America great again by taking us back to the fossil-fueled 1950s.
While Washington under Trump continues to funnel more funds into our never-ending wars, few Americans express responsibility for the spread of terrorism, failed states, destruction of lives and livelihoods, the tsunami of refugees, and the rubblization of some of the world’s great cities.
Engelhardt calls on us to imagine a government “distracted by its hopeless wars and the terrorist groups they continue to generate, facing the possible frying of our world and not lifting a finger to deal with the situation… It’s the definition of an empire of madness.”
TOM ENGELHARDT
While he is a problem an many insist on impeaching Trump, he is not THE problem and impeaching him is not the answer to THE problem…. 🙂
“Absolute power does not corrupt absolutely, absolute power attracts the corruptible.”
― Frank Herbert
Wonderful quote from Frank Herbert. With respect to the summary Rosaliene has kindly provided of Mr. Engelhardt’s book, I cannot say that a forceful counter-terrorism response following 9/11 was unnecessary and it is unclear if he would have preferred no action at all based on the summary. I agree however, that our go-to response, in this day of the volunteer army and a President who believes he must be tough and worship those who are tougher, should not be to reflexively overpower the opposition. And, indeed, much suffering could have and can be avoided by providing more of our fiscal and moral attention to all that is wrong within our borders. Thanks for this provocative introduction to the Engelhardt’s book, Rosaliene.
Dr. Stein, the author Tom Engelhardt was not against an American response to the 9/11 attack. Rather, he saw it as an overreach of American power. He sees the Bush-Cheney declaration for global warfare against terrorism as “wildly out of proportion to what had actually happened or to the outfit [Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda] that had caused it to happen. But anyone [at the time] who suggested as much (or an alternative as simple and unimpressive as a “police action” against bin Laden and crew) was promptly laughed out of the room or abused into silence.”
Engelhardt’s book, with its accessible prose, is essential reading for those who seek to probe beneath the opaque waters of “the swamp.”
If he is comprised with the Kremlin, America and our Western allies would indeed have a serious problem. Hopefully, Mueller’s investigation will provide us all with the answers.
Reblogged this on Guyanese Online.
Thanks for sharing, Cyril. Have a great week 🙂
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Thanks, GuyFrog 🙂
thanks for this awareness, Rosaliene!
imho
the only way out
is in 🙂
Thanks, David. Not sure what you mean by “the only way out / is in.” If you mean that the answer to America’s decline would depend upon our willingness and courage to look within ourselves, as individuals and as a nation, I would totally agree.
in a way
it’s a koan!
your interpretation
offers insightful guidance
for us, Rosaliene 🙂
I read this with interest Rosaliene as you have summed up what we are saying over here about America. Perhaps not being part of the indoctrination leaves us able to see more clearly. Unfortunately my current observations also say that nothing will continue to be done to change anything – maybe the die has been cast. I hope I’m wrong!
Pauline, thanks for sharing your view from New Zealand. Yes, I do believe that you would have a clearer vision from outside the looking glass. Sadly, I share your conclusion that nothing will change. The “war lovers,” as Engelhardt calls them, will prevail until America implodes like the Soviet Union. The rise of Donald Trump is the bitter fruit of our endless wars. How we fail to learn from history!
It’s all commerce and greed isn’t it Rosaliene – sadly. There seem to be so very many of us who want something different, who know our western world is broken, yet it seems we make no difference. I find myself wondering why that is.
Those who want something different; who know the system is broken are too few to matter much. Most important, they really have no idea what they would replace the broken “thing” with, since it’s not just a small part that’s broken, but really, the entire conveyance. The collective civilization bus is not just broken, it’s obsolete. Each new repair costs more, each tire patch more shaky and wears out quicker. It uses more fuel even as fuel becomes harder to find and more poisonous in previously unheard of ways such as climate change. That’s called entropy of a system. That is what must be addressed.
First, bite the bullet and write off the entire machine. Then, after the consequences of that have killed billions and destroyed entire nations, plunging the world into chaos and anarchism, allow for a new type of mind to come up with a new “system” but really, one that is a non-system no longer based on any sort of collective leadership.
Since that is not going to happen, people do not posses that kind of courage and desire for self-sacrifice, as long as a profit can be turned, a loaf of bread purchased or some amusement squeezed out of the dying collective, it will be patched up and pushed back on the road by slaves if necessary, but it will be forced to function.
The thing to be aware of “now” is that entropy of any closed system is irreversible. The collective Titanic IS sinking and there is nothing to be done because there is nothing else out there to intervene. Those who suspect, or have seen the bottom of the hull filling up will rant, rave, hope, pray and die, to be followed by more pray-ers, hopers, ravers, ranters, who will also die… but even the rats, this time, have nowhere to swim to: they can’t leave the sinking ship so they will continue to try to prop doors to stop the rising water or they will sing and dance on the upper decks until they too slip beneath the waves.
Pretty picture, that, isn’t it? Yet we could still turn it around… if we actually wanted to. There is a way that can change everything without resorting to an Armageddon and I don’t mean intervention by divine or alien forces!
Pauline, what we the 90 to 95 percent of this world want doesn’t matter. The One Percent elite and their collaborators hold the power and are intent on maintaining their dominance.
Rosaliene,
Wow. I agree that Trump is just the latest culmination of a nation and government gone berserk. The US has been in the empire-building mode since the beginning, yet the populace goes blithely along, believing the lies that the story-sellers have been putting out for centuries.
That we the people have been played for fools, and continue to be played for fools, is hard to admit. It’s even harder to know what to do about it.
It certainly seems our government is increasingly paranoid. The terrorists are in the mirror.
Thanks for bringing attention to this compelling book.
Katharine, thanks for adding your view “in the mirror.” I’m a regular reader of Engelhardt’s coverage of our wars and related issues through TomDispatch. His latest book puts it all into context with the rise of Donald Trump.
What to do about it? Here’s some advice from Robert Reich on seeing through “The Fog of Trump,” published today (July 22nd) on Salon:
http://www.salon.com/2018/07/22/the-fog-of-trump_partner/
Rosaliene,
I obediently watched Reich’s video, even though I’ve had a strong aversion to him since reading his book “Supercapitalism.” I could say that the tactics he ascribes to Trump have been used by all sides throughout history, except Twitter, of course, since it wasn’t invented yet. But FDR used his fireside chats to trick people into taking their money back to the banks, then made gold tender illegal. Woodrow Wilson used his personal tours to convince Americans to enter WWI, and these are just two examples.
Not to defend Trump. I don’t like what he’s doing, either, but I’ve been a fan of “None of the Above” on the ballot for a long time.
The choice is yours, Katharine. I still have lots to learn about the US political system.
Rosaliene,
You (and I) can never know enough. Right now, I’m watching a youtube on the health care system and thinking about you. It’s a Justice4Poland.com blog, and the video is long, about the pharmaceutical industry and the history of the health care system in the US, but it’s very good, so far.
Well, I’m not American but that sounds like a fair assessment!
John, with your distance in the UK comes greater clarity. With the “very strong relationship” between our countries, the British government walks a tight rope. Britain’s exit from the EU adds to future uncertainty. We live in very uncertain times.
An “empire of madness” indeed!
Robert, I read an article today by William Rivers Pitt of Truthout that you should find of interest:
http://truthout.org/articles/heres-an-incredible-offer-donald-resign/
Wow!
I read the article: he’s a real sweetheart, your president. What does he have to do to be impeached, shoot an unarmed aide in cold blood in the oval office in front of twenty witnesses? Could he tweet a plausible defence from that to his support base? Probably. “He threatened me with a dirty look, my life was in danger. I had this really nifty gold plated .45 given to me by the NRA and I’d never used it so I thought this was a perfect time to try it out”?
Ditto to Robert A. Vella’s comment!
As I look on from afar, it is hard to believe the traction this man has as president, enjoyed this piece.
Thanks, Paul. The Power of One works both ways. We the people of Earth can prevail.
Yes we can Rosaliene
“They that sow the wind, shall reap the whirlwind”
Hosea 8-7
It will pass…like everything does, but of course, the question remains, what will be next?
More of the same, or even worst..?
That’s the billion dollar question, isn’t it, Burningheart.
Burningheart, with the effects of climate change disruption already assailing numerous regions worldwide, I would say that there’s much worse to come.
I am against any war, but it doesn’t mean I ignore facts about them. What made the author think that “When the Soviet Union imploded in 1991, the United States became the sole superpower.”? Russia inherited everything Soviet, including all the secret plants and military bases. But is it so important? Is there a difference between getting killed by a country that owns one nuclear bomb and the one that owns many bombs? It only takes one nuclear explosion to be dead. Most important is willingness to kill, and this is the real ‘superpower’. Only those who have lived in the USSR know what is Russia. They will live on bread and water and still attack anyone whom their government considers an enemy. So different from the Americans, right? 🙂
Inese, I agree with you that we humans are crazy to amass weapons capable of our self-destruction.
I read about the case, Jerry. Thanks for sharing the video link.
I found this interesting. It seems the list of 1%s that he lists are a little simplistic. With half the votes going to Trump in the last election it seems to me that represents much more than 1% voting him in… unless you are referring to the Dark Money that underwrites both parties in an election as being responsible. Where do you think Obama fit into this 1% when he was president, or was he too like Bush just a puppet of the dark powers that put him there?
Rothpoetry: a very good and pertinent question, one I’d like to hear an answer to from the Obama supporters who mourn the passing of his presidential presence, conveniently forgetting that he increased US military intervention in the Middle East, continued the Bush war in Iraq, presided over the regime change and overthrow of Libya’s legitimate government and the cold blooded murder of it’s ruler. He initiated the process of regime change in Syria, thus setting a bloody stage for Trump to play with. Obama is also known as the “Obomber” under whose “regime” drone warfare increased significantly, resulting in schools and hospitals being indiscriminately bombed and thousands of innocent civilians murdered in cold blood by the US military and their proxies. Under Obama, Clinton as Secretary of State is recorded as having maliciously uttered the famous words, “We came, we saw, he died” of Libya’sLybia’smate ruler, Muammar Ghaddafi. Obama and co ensured that the US’s endless wars would not only remain endless, but increase in scope. Yes indeed, an excellent question as my research reveals that Obama was primarily the puppet of the MIC and particularly of Big Pharma.
Thank you for your response. I find in the political scheme of things there are always more questions than answers, and what’s happening is not what’s going on!
Thanks for reading, Dwight. When he speaks of the one-percent government, Engelhardt is referring to the influx of corporate money into the electoral system following the Supreme Court 2010 Citizens United decision that benefits both political parties (one-percent politics).
In response to your question, I would say that both Obama and Bush won support from corporate elites seeking favor for their various industries. As to the role of the “dark powers,” which Engelhardt refers to as the National Security State, I cannot say.
After reading Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America by Nancy MacLean (published 2017), I learned that the capitalist elites have spent years to achieve this victory. According to MacLean, it all began in 1956 with the US Supreme Court second Brown v. Board of Education ruling, calling for the dismantling of segregation in public schools with “all deliberate speed.”
A couple of years ago I saw a Bill Moyers show on PBS and later a 60 minutes show on the amount of Dark Money that is funneled into political campaigns from nameless sources. It is unbelievable how our system has been manipulated in every political campaign!! Forget the Russians it comes from many sources and perhaps from them as well.
I miss Bill Moyers’ weekly PBS Series. An archive of his TV shows and numerous articles are available on billmoyers.com.
fascinating; I’m always trying to look down the line of history and see how, overall, things do get better – life expectancy improves, child mortality diminishes, there are more plausibly democratic governments working today than before even though the ride to progress is neither smooth no straight forward. It’s easy to think the world is going to hell in a hand cart, but actually it isn’t. Trump is a pain, Brexit is a pain, over hot summers are a pain, but a glance at history and you’ll find many cases where the world considers itself broken and yet scrabbles forward, the disruptive technologies step in and we lurch forward. Personally I don’t have enough time on this planet to ‘woah is me’ and beat my chest with the pointlessness of it all. I’ll flap my butterfly wings wherever i can and hopefully, with others, may just create a hurricane of good somewhere in the future. And if not? Well, I’m pretty bloody sure someone else will.
Wish I could share your optimism that our world is not going to hell in a hand cart.
Well no one knows do they? Just keep trying to stop it falling off the edge, it’s all we can do, eh?