“In the valley of elah”..

.. is a good movie with excellent acting and a reasonable script. It is also a snapshot of where the usa is, in it’s journey through history as the paramount power of the late 2oth century. The story only concerns itself with showing the effects of participating in the iraq war on a few soldiers.

Whatever they were when they went, they are sociopathic monsters when they return. even the winners, in the war on terror, pay a high price.

The war on terror began in 1933, with a handshake. Ibn saud handed over the oil drilling rights on Arabian soil, esso arranged for the american government to guarantee protection of the saud family against all enemies. America had created it’s first middle eastern dictatorship. Then there was the invasion of Palestine by jewish refugees after the holocaust, using (privately supplied ) American guns and money. The pahlavi dictatorship of iran followed, after the murder of prime minister mossdegh and consequent destabilization of the Iranian parliamentary republic. When the Iranian people finally managed to throw out pahlavi, they put themselves into the ‘cuba’ class of enemies of the usa, never to be forgiven. But I think the support of saddam Hussein encapsulates the essence of america’s covert war: the man was a known monster, but he was willing to make war on iran, as long as America kept him supplied with munitions. In the middle east, America had no morals, and didn’t bother to disguise themselves.

That was the war on terror. For the first 50 years, it was almost entirely one way. And it was called, not a war on terror, but merely ‘guarding america’s interests.’ Resistance from the people of the middle east was ineffectual, until September 11, 2001.

Then the American people learned that foreign policy had consequences to themselves. The ensuing panic was remarkable. The home of the brave gave up it’s civil rights, started two unnecessary and unwinnable wars, and gutted their already tottering economy, out of simple fear of what 19 angry Moslems could do, and might do again. "the war on terror" was already lost, for americans were terrified.

Perhaps the worst consequence to America will be the iraq veterans. Many are going to be expensive medical dependants. Many others have been taught to kill on impulse.