Why Does America USA Love War? Illustrated Book Review of Addicted To War by Joel Andreas

This article is a brief review of the book, "Addicted To War", by Joel Andreas.

I would first like to make a disclaimer:

In no way do I blame US Soldiers for any of the things mentioned in this article. Politicians And Large Corporations are solely responsible for these atrocities and soldiers just do what they are told, and often don't agree with the orders. My father is a Vietnam Veteran, and I pray for and support all US soldiers, and hope that they all come home safe soon!

With that said, let's look at a timeline of all the conflicts the US has engaged in. Remember, the USA is a fairly new country!

"We must march from ocean to ocean...It is the destiny of the white race." -Rep. Giles, MD

"I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch...A people's dream died there..." -Black Elk, Spiritual Leader of the Lakota people and survivor of the "Wounded Knee" massacre in S. Dakota

"I firmly believe that when any territory outside the present territorial limits of the United States becomes necessary for our defense or essential for commercial development, we ought to loose no time in acquiring it." Sen. Orville Platt, CT, 1894

"The Philippines are ours forever...the Pacific is Our ocean." Sen. Albert Beveridge, IN, 1900

"I should welcome ANY WAR, for I think this country needs one." -T. Roosevelt. 1897

"We are the ruling race of the world...We will not renounce our part in the mission of our race, trustee, under GOD of the civilization of the world...He has marked us as HIS CHOSEN PEOPLE...that we may administer government among SAVAGE and SENILE PEOPLES." Sen. Beveridge

"I spent 33 years and 4 months in active military service...And during that period I spent most of my time as a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism...Thus, I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American Oil Interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the Raping of half a dozen Central America Republics for the benefit of Wall Street...I helped Purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1902-1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American Sugar Interests in 1916. I helped make Honduras right for American Fruit Companies in 1903. In China, 1927, I helped see to it that Standard Oil went on its way unmolested." -General Smedley Butler, reconsidering his role as a Military Leader, after his retirement

"We pray that God might guide us to use [the Nuclear Bombs] in His ways and for His purposes." -President Harry Truman, 1945

"What America is tasting now is something insignificant to what we have tasted for scores of years...Millions of innocent children are being killed as I speak. They are being killed in Iraq without any sins...neither America nor the people who live in it will dream of security before we live it here in Palestine and not before all the infidel armies leave the land of Muhammad..."-Osama bi Laden, Oct. 7, 2001

"Even a dolt understands the principle-we need the oil." -Advisor to G.H.W. Bush in Time magazine, 1990

"Oil is much too important a commodity to be left in the hands of the Arabs" -Henry Kissinger

• The United States has the largest, richest, and most powerful military in History.
• There is no country too far for the U.S. to attack at any given moment.
• Provoking war for profit causes the U.S. to have shaky relationships all around the world with foreign countries, even our allies.
• A few hundred years ago, the U.S. was a mere settlement of just 13 colonies, still dependent on Europe.
• The U.S. has effectively been at war during its entire existence.
• Propaganda has been used throughout each war to encourage Americans that what we are doing is in the best interest of the world. Realistically, only the corporations (oil, munitions, aerospace technologies, banking and stock markets, etc.) benefit from these wars.
• Middle class Americans pay for these wars through their taxes while big corporations pay little or no tax and profit from the wars.
• The "wealthy one percent" own and regulate everything at our expense. (Think banks charging you interest on your own money when you want to borrow it; you save money in their bank and they make profits but share very little of those profits.)
• The U.S. military, demographically, is spread in every region of the world.
• The U.S. spends more than 3 trillion dollars annually, paid for by tax-paying citizens, for the cause of war. There are millions of starving and homeless children in all of the 50 states.

The United States is addicted to war for one reason: Personal Profit. It can be argued that these wars were always in the interest of preserving American freedom, but most of the time, that is just propaganda. When another country has what we want, America has no problem invading, killing and stealing to get it. As we have seen, this has been going on since the beginning of U.S. history, and continues through today.

I am not an anti-American and I love my country. I appreciate the military and all those who have fought for my freedom, alive and those who died in honor. I am against the exploitation and depletion of other races and peoples for the pure reason of greed and profit that benefit a minority of the general population.

Great societies such as Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece came to their demise for the same reasons; over-globalization and greed, and a desire to conquer the entire world. As we have seen in history, no society can dominate forever. I really hope that the future of this country realizes that we are repeating history and make the appropriate changes to avoid our collapse.

God Bless America!