Oppose the War and Its Machinery
Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair
The war resides mostly in the background here in the aggressor nation. Most of those who think about it at all tend to oppose it and seem to think it’s a task forced on the US by the zealots running Israel. Some take it even further, presenting an argument that blames the relationship between the mad rulers of Israel and the United States for the entire catastrophe. The argument varies, but its essence is that Bibi Netanyahu is the individual responsible for convincing the sundowning Donald Trump to bomb Iran for the sake of Israel. There are those who argue that the reason for this is because Israel’s Mossad has compromising materials on Trump and his escapades with Jeffrey Epstein, while others place Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in the role of instigator. Of course, no one has produced a smoking gun for either possibility, even though both have a potential element of truth. It is likely that Epstein had some working relationship with Mossad and it’s an established fact that Kushner’s family have a long-term relationship with Netanyahu. Furthermore, Kushner is financially connected to Saudi Arabia and UAE’s monarchies. It’s an established fact that Israel, the Arab monarchies and the United States all oppose the Iranian government—its support of national liberation and anti-imperialist movements and its existence in general. Furthermore, all of these governments are more interested in maintaining the political situation in West Asia as it is and has been for decades. They are not interested in bringing popular democracy to the region, with some more than willing to maintain a constant state of war and occupation to maintain the current hierarchy of power.
The current war with Iran has again reminded the world of these truths. Here in the US the opposition, while apparently widespread, has yet to manifest itself in a manner powerful enough to reach most of the mainstream media. The once traditional organizers of antiwar protests, especially those on the Left, are with a few exceptions, like CODEPINK, silent. Individuals have stepped up, making public protests like that of military veteran Guido Rodriguez maintaining a perch on Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge in Washington DC. I am sure some of this apparent hesitation is related to the uncertain and unusual nature of the conflict itself: the lack of constant armed hostilities, the economic war, the half-truths and lies of the Trump administration and some media, the uncertain negotiations and the conflicting reports from all sides. Then there is the nature of the Iranian government, especially as it is portrayed in most western media. Without going into details, suffice it to say the Iranian government is misrepresented more often than it is factually presented. The nature of its law enforcement forces and their social repression makes it easy for its enemies to portray it as a dictatorship, even when those governments making such claims are authoritarian themselves. This is as true for Israel and (ever more so by the day) the United States as it is for the Arab regimes opposed to Iran.
History makes it pretty clear that the US and Israel work together and have for decades, with the US as the imperial power. Israel is at most a sub-imperial/regional power, subordinate to Washington. Sometimes Washington takes the lead and sometimes Tel Aviv does. If Israel was leading in regards to Iran, it would bomb Iran on its own. When it comes to Gaza and Lebanon, Israel is definitely the lead while Washington provides logistical support(including intelligence), weapons, political cover and so on. Now that Washington is militarily involved, I don’t think it matters that much whether Trump wants out or not; the rest of the US war machine has its own agenda that transcends Trump’s. It is an agenda that, when it comes to Iran, has been in place since the end of World War Two. The British Empire was fading and the US Empire was rising. The Soviet Union had its own interests in Iran and various forms of socialism and communism enjoyed popular support, although the primary political sentiment was one that was against monarchy and imperial domination. This is why the popular government of Mossadegh was elected to power after the British Empire retreated. Mossadegh represented democracy and a form of social democracy that included the nationalization of Iranian oil. Likewise, Mossadegh’s program was why the US CIA overthrew his government and installed the Shah, who was the descendant of an earlier monarch. After the coup, which was openly and tacitly supported by certain anti-leftist religious factions in Iran including Khomeini, the Shah took his role as a US client seriously, with Iran becoming the largest recipient of US monetary support outside of Europe, a military forward post of the US Empire and a willing enforcer of anti-communism, even creating a vicious secret police force trained by the CIA. Now, his son is working with US intelligence and other sectors of the US Empire, hoping he will be back on the Peacock throne before he gets much older.
Profits of the Conflict
94,000,000,000 dollars. Ninety-four billion dollars. 79,834,200,000 Euro. 69,013,578,000 Pounds. 8,881,590,000,000 Indian Rupees. 639,284,600,000 Chinese Yuan. 1,618,031,400,000 Mexican Pesos. These numbers are from the Oxfam website[1] and indicate the profits experienced by the energy industry (as of late April 2026) since the February 25, 2026 attack on Iran (the one that killed 147 elementary school students when their school was hit by two Tomahawk missiles fired by the US military.) The website shares more: “six of the biggest fossil fuel companies are projected to earn $2,967 a second in profits in 2026, new Oxfam research finds, ahead of the first global conference this week on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels in Santa Marta, Colombia. This marks an increase of almost $37 million a day compared to the 2025 profits of these six corporations – Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Exxon and TotalEnergies. Their total projected fossil fuel profits of 2026 are $94 billion: enough to provide solar power for the energy needs of almost 50 million people in Africa.” Meanwhile, as of May 7, 2026, a new report by the Center for International Policy estimates the U.S. has spent nearly $72 billion on the Iran war, or $1.2 billion per day on average. Meanwhile, Jim Taiclet, the CEO of war industry leader Lockheed Martin told investors that this future of war and conflict a “golden opportunity” for growth[2]. One assumes Mr. Taiclet is working hard to ensure the Pentagon’s request for another half trillion dollars above the current trillion dollars goes through,
In a world where millions of people are not getting enough to eat, struggle to find shelter or go without, cannot access health care and see little hope for a change in the direction of their lives, the fact that the world’s most powerful military chooses war for profits and power should be enough to fill the streets with protesters. Instead, we watch while those in power conspire to create more conflict and more profits for their class, voting for other members of that class who claim their interests are somehow different than the social and economic circles from whence they come. This isn’t to say that there aren’t a few class traitors among the one percent. However, the likelihood any such individuals are interested in participating in the very regime designed to keep the billionaire (or millionaire) class in power is a rarity. Even more true is that the likelihood any such person can overthrow that class from within is just not going to happen. In other words, it’s up to us. Vote for those antiwar candidates, but don’t stop there. Turn political meetings into antiwar conversations. Draw the connections between war abroad and austerity and repression at home. Organize teach-ins and rallies. Protest at the World Cup. Conduct civil disobedience and direct actions. Turn your union meeting into an antiwar conversation. Do the same in your classroom. Get organized.
The demands are straightforward:
US Out of West Asia (Middle East)
No aid or arms to Israel
Money for social needs, not war and repression.
1. https://www.oxfam.org.au/blog/freeloaders-how-gas-corporations-are-paying-little-tax/ Accessed May 8, 2026 ↑
2. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/apr/23/lockheed-martin-earnings-call-trump-pentagon-opportunity Accessed May 8,2026 ↑
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