War Fever Not Eternal

When war fever dissipates, politicians and generals who’ve been making hay start to fret. After WW2 ended, the Brits threw out Churchill and elected a Labour government in his place. After the first Gulf War, Bush Snr got the heave. I think people feel some sort of collective shame about their unquestioning blood lust and project it onto their convenient scapegoat politicians. That’s why Bush Jnr wants his War On Abstract Nouns to be “endless”, and why the fact that stories about military errors, beatings, and Afghan civilian casualties now entering the US mainstream are a worrying sign for him, especially with the November elections looming.

I even saw that crazy channel Fox News host a discussion about civilian casualties last night. In between much licking of chops and talk of smart bombs and wartech porn, an admission of culpability from some people was impressive.

Of course, the US military usually gets away with it. The Mai Lai Massacre in Vietnam is now universally acknowledge to have been inhumane and barbaric. But the colonel at the time assigned to attempt a cover-up? Colin Powell, now the US Secretary of State. I doubt very much if any questionable US actions in Afghanistan will get investigated.