A Senseless Macho War Is Raging between the US and Iran
Trump and Tehran’s leaders are eager to end the conflict, but they also want to emerge as winners. The only way to do that is to always hit back.
Every war is ultimately senseless, but some acts of war are even more senseless than others. For some time, the U.S. and Iran have been trying to end their war, and, two months ago, they agreed to a ceasefire that had been largely respected until recently. The substantive talks on a deal — mainly about the nuclear program and Iran’s frozen billions in assets — are challenging enough. But what complicates matters further is a psychological factor: Donald Trump and the Iranian leaders both want to ultimately declare themselves the winners and, under no circumstances, appear to be the losers.
That’s why they feel compelled to respond decisively to alleged and genuine provocations from the other side. If one side fires, the other must fire back — and the ceasefire is immediately in danger again. Each side wants to fire the last rocket to show who’s stronger. From a military point of view, the strikes of recent days make no sense whatsoever; they only serve to soothe wounded pride in Washington and Tehran.
Sandbox Tantrums
This “I’ll hit back” dynamic is being fueled by the parallel clash between Israel and Hezbollah. The U.S. views this as a separate conflict, whereas Iran sees it as part of a larger confrontation in the region. For them, every Israeli attack is a pretext to restart their own spiral of violence. Absurdly, Trump demands that the Israelis not respond to Iranian strikes, yet he himself — behaving like a child in a sandbox — can’t help reacting when U.S. targets are attacked.
This war, along with all its consequences for the world economy, won’t end until the machismo on both sides has been appeased. At the moment, no one knows how that could happen.
Every war is ultimately senseless, but some acts of war are even more senseless than others. For some time, the U.S. and Iran have been trying to end their war, and, two months ago, they agreed to a ceasefire that had been largely respected until recently. The substantive talks on a deal — mainly about the nuclear program and Iran’s frozen billions in assets — are challenging enough. But what complicates matters further is a psychological factor: Donald Trump and the Iranian leaders both want to ultimately declare themselves the winners and, under no circumstances, appear to be the losers.
That’s why they feel compelled to respond decisively to alleged and genuine provocations from the other side. If one side fires, the other must fire back — and the ceasefire is immediately in danger again. Each side wants to fire the last rocket to show who’s stronger. From a military point of view, the strikes of recent days make no sense whatsoever; they only serve to soothe wounded pride in Washington and Tehran.
Sandbox Tantrums
This “I’ll hit back” dynamic is being fueled by the parallel clash between Israel and Hezbollah. The U.S. views this as a separate conflict, whereas Iran sees it as part of a larger confrontation in the region. For them, every Israeli attack is a pretext to restart their own spiral of violence. Absurdly, Trump demands that the Israelis not respond to Iranian strikes, yet he himself — behaving like a child in a sandbox — can’t help reacting when U.S. targets are attacked.
This war, along with all its consequences for the world economy, won’t end until the machismo on both sides has been appeased. At the moment, no one knows how that could happen.
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