Almost as chilling as the speech was the
reaction. US neo-conservatives who had
led the United States into the
disastrous war with Iraq, such as former
Ambassador John Bolton, cheered. So too
did Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, who recklessly and
relentlessly itches for the United
States to destroy Iran. Most pundits
chastised Trump for his tone or
demeanor, but viewed the speech as a
television spectacle to be rated rather
than a threat to world peace. Don’t
worry, they tell us, the United States
will never launch a war against
nuclear-armed North Korea.
This complacency is perhaps our greatest
danger. Take Trump, President Kim Jong
Un of North Korea, and Netanyahu at
their word. They mean what they say,
even if what they say is irresponsible
vainglory that could get millions
killed. Bombastic and self-absorbed
narcissists throughout history have
meant what they said. And yes, they have
gotten many millions killed. Now one
warhead can do the job.
Even if such talk is bluster and bluff,
the consequences can be the same. The
game of chicken often ends in disaster.
That, after all, is what the game is all
about, daring to go beyond the limits.
And accidents are likely even when
leaders imagine they are in control. As
John F. Kennedy observed during the
Cuban Missile Crisis, “There is always
some son of a bitch who doesn’t get the
word” despite an order for restraint
from above.
War is avoided by cool heads and steady
hands at the helm, the opposite of
Trump. War is avoided by solving
political problems, by seeing the deeper
reasons for the confrontation through
the eyes of the adversary. War is
avoided by diplomacy, not bluster.
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Trump is doing the opposite, aiming to
humiliate his North Korean counterpart,
even mocking him as “Rocket man,” and
thereby (he seems to believe) forcing a
highly visible retreat by North Korea.
North Korea told the world about its
strategic objectives a few days ago, but
the Trump administration has pointedly
refused to acknowledge the statement,
and the media has failed to analyze it.
The North Koreans declared that they
seek an “equilibrium” with the US
military to deter a “military option” by
the United States. In their own words,
they are not seeking war, world
domination, or nuclear annihilation.
What they are seeking is to avoid being
overthrown by the United States.
Their fear of US-led regime change is,
alas, all too realistic. The United
States is addicted to overthrowing its
adversaries, most recently Iraq’s Saddam
Hussein, Libya’s Moammar Khadafy, and
(unsuccessfully) Syria’s Bashar
al-Assad. In the case of both Saddam and
Khadafy, the US-led regime change came
after both of those leaders had
renounced their nation’s efforts to
obtain nuclear weapons.
In
the case of Iran, Trump’s overheated
rhetoric is even more bizarre. A nuclear
agreement has already been reached and
is being fulfilled. Iran’s moderate
President Hassan Rohani has won
re-election against hardliners. The
country is fighting ISIS effectively.
The real explanation in the case of Iran
lies with the US administration acceding
to the reckless lobbying by both Israel
and Saudi Arabia to lure us into a war
with Iran for the narrow interests of
those two countries (at least
“interests” as warmongers in the two
countries perceive them).
Have no complacency. Speak out against
war. Demand democratic constraint over
the US military and oversight by our
hapless, so-far useless Congress. War
typically seems impossible until it is
too late. Then it is utterly disastrous
and ruinous for all.
Jeffrey D. Sachs is University Professor
and director of the Center for
Sustainable Development at Columbia
University, and author of “The Age of
Sustainable Development.”
