Opinion | America Will Still Recover From The Iran Humiliation. And That's The Tragedy

Can the US ever recover from this Iran blunder?

The short answer is yes.

In the past 200 years, all democracies have looked up to the United States of America for inspiration while taking baby steps towards it, for strength when they falter, and support when they are threatened. More importantly, the US will never let you forget them. The first principles of the US democracy have given democracies across the world something to aspire to: fairness, knowledge, hope, dignity, unity, and security.

"The first principles and causes are most knowable; for by reason of these, and from these, all other things come to be known, and not these by means of the things subordinate to them," wrote Aristotle in Metaphysics in 350 BC. The latest Iran episode has managed to shatter every single one of these foundational values of the United States. 

Let's talk about fairness. President Donald Trump's decision to attack Iran in the middle of Oman-mediated negotiations in February is the textbook definition of a diplomatic deception. Nothing short of a taboo. Assassinating the head of a state, killing civilians during attacks on a country's civil and military leadership, and going ahead with a bombing spree despite mounting civilian casualties, all on the pretext of a potential attack, is the opposite of the fairness principle.

Reign Of Ignorance

Knowledge was the biggest casualty in this warmongering. From the very decision to attack Iran on the basis of a rumour, to hitting Iran's universities with missiles, the US President has demonstrated his utter disregard for any pursuit of knowledge. Not just Trump but his entire administration has run helter-skelter in turning his social media posts into policies. Not a single conscientious objector. Not a single ally to give him a clear picture of the consequences.

And this is where hope breathes its last. In the past month, the world has witnessed the paralysis of Congress in limiting the hazards that Trump's not-so-knowledgeable posts unleashed, not just in the US but also in the rest of the world. Barely a Republican or two have been constantly objecting to the decision of going to war with Iran. The rest are comfortable with what the President wakes up to.

Nothing Is Too Much

The dignity of the presidential office of the United States has been perceived to be compromised by much lesser acts and words. Yet, nothing seems to be too much when Trump is concerned. It's as if the rules of all engagements have changed in his presidency: no offence grave enough, no articulation too vulgar. It is now considered alright to bring up war, in all its darkness, at an Easter celebration where children are in attendance, and a bunny standing captive in the balcony. Again, no visual is jarring enough. Not even Trump's photographs appearing in the declassified Epstein Files.

The unity of the United States is facing an unprecedented crisis, with party lines dividing people across the length and the breadth of the country. While ICE continues with its job of separating families, there is very little that Democrats and Republicans now have to say to each other. Research suggests that "the ideological distance about fundamental issues between Democrats and Republicans increased in the past 30 years: both parties progressively moved away from the centre, at different rates". No wonder, then, while President Trump goes on making social media threats to annihilate the entire civilisation of Iran, former Democratic presidents, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, cannot muster anything other than sports tweets. The only thing the country is united in is tone-deafness.

Our Illusions About Forever Wars

Since security has been a forever buzzword for the US, with the present Iran "crisis" being its latest manifestation, no security analyst in their right mind would assume that forever wars bring any sense of security anywhere. The slow simmer of destruction and resentment creates a potpourri of unrest. The US may delude itself, but it really isn't too far from West Asia. Its allies in the region cannot escape their geographies. The rise in antisemitic violence across the world, and especially in the US, has undercut the promises made to the Jewish people. The only Jew the White House seems to be able to protect is the Israeli president, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Yet, the irony of our times is that despite all of the above, the US will continue as the self-proclaimed defender of democracies across the world. As long as there is a lack of will in political leadership to commit to the democratic ideals and a concomitant pusillanimity in the public, democracies across the world will have to deal with the US interventions. Afghanistan can vouch for it. And so can Iraq. Let's not forget Libya and Syria.

Iran has turned out to be a Vietnam for the US democracy.

Yet, things will go on even when they fall apart.   

(The author is a senior Delhi-based academic and author)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author