Darren Lewis: US War Games Expose Toxic Relationship as Global Tensions Escalate
It has become all too easy to dismiss Donald Trump and his delusional rhetoric as merely comical or absurd. However, with widespread death and destruction ongoing in the Middle East and fears that traded blows could escalate to apocalyptic proportions, this situation is no laughing matter. The gravity of the crisis is underscored by recent events that reveal a deeply toxic dynamic in international relations.
Hollywood Propaganda and the Glorification of War
Last week, a social media montage featured Hollywood film figures declaring that justice had been served "the American Way" as more bombs rained down on Iran, killing men, women, and terrified children. This reprehensible display of testosterone-fuelled childishness reviled the rest of the world, following the burials of some 160 girls bombed at school in Iran and the deaths of six American servicemen. Hollywood superstar Ben Stiller, whose movie Tropic Thunder was included in the montage, demanded the video be removed, posting on X: "Hey White House, we never gave you permission and have no interest in being part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie."
Jingoism and Dehumanisation Tactics
The juvenile, gung-ho jingoism was further exemplified by Peter Hegseth, head of the White House Department of War, who stated of the Iranian regime: "They are toast and they know it. This was never meant to be a fair fight, and it is not a fair fight. We are punching them while they’re down." This bloodthirsty framing employs a well-used tactic: dehumanising opponents by suggesting they are animals that cannot be controlled or reasoned with, thereby justifying aggression. If one believes the figure bandied about that Iranians slaughtered 30,000 of their own people during a recent crackdown, they are precisely the Trump administration’s target audience, raising questions about why intervention did not occur earlier.
Political Responses and the Special Relationship
Sir Keir Starmer has faced justified criticism in recent years for betraying the socialists who voted for him, but he deserves praise for refusing to dip his hands into the blood spilled across Iran and the disgraceful celebrations around it. Meanwhile, the media panic attempting to browbeat Starmer into aligning with Trump has been shredded by figures like General Sir Richard Shirreff, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, who dismissed the idea that the so-called Special Relationship is under threat. Europe’s leaders spent the first year of Trump’s second term climbing into his nether regions with a torch, yet Trump threatened a 25% tariff on the UK and other European nations unless the US was allowed to purchase Greenland, questioning the very notion of a special relationship.
International Rejection and the Path Forward
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, has since told Trump where to go over Iran, rejecting the strikes as "reckless and illegal." Starmer is said to have had his Hugh Grant moment, per Love Actually, refusing to join the strikes and maintaining that talks were the best way forward. Rightly so, as war is not, and never has been, a game. The ongoing conflict drives home the toxic nature of certain international relationships, emphasising that none of us should be giggling while the world burns with escalating violence and destruction.
