Why The War Party Loves To Call Foreign Leaders Insane

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by Tyler Durden
Sep 8, 2017 3:30 AM
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Authored by Ryan McMaken via The Mises Institute,

When the US government decides it doesn't like a foreign regime, it's become something of a tradition for US politicians — with the help of a compliant media — to portray those leaders as irrational, unhinged, or even downright insane.

This was true of Saddam Hussein, and it was true of Slobodan Milosevic. In both cases, a foreign head of state was condemned as irrational in order to help justify US invasions and bombings of foreign nations that were no threat to the United States.

The US narrative usually goes something like this — as described by Ronnie Lipschutz:

Why would so-called rogues — and these are the only countries that, according to Washington, threaten US forces, allies, or interests — choose to [threaten the US]? No rational reason can be given, and so irrational ones are offered instead. They hate us, but for no reason since we have no designs on them. They desire vengeance, but for no reason since we have never offended them. They wish to injure us, for for no reason, since they have only been injured through their interference with our pusuit of order.
This narrative helps to reinforce the credulous American public's naive acceptance of the idea that the US government is an untrammeled force for good in the international sphere, and that any opposition to the US must be based on irrational, evil motives. If any other head of state is angry with the United States, it's simply because he absurdly desires world conquest, or to massacre innocents. Or he may even be insane.

Why We Must Claim They're Crazy

But there's an even more important motivation behind portraying "rogue" nations as being run by crazy people. It allows advocates for war to claim that deterrence via America's huge nuclear and conventional arsenals will not work — and thus these leaders present a grave threat to the American public. Lipschutz notes: "if insanity or irrationality are to blame for wars, deterrence cannot work to prevent them."

A rational head of state, of course, would understand that any existential threat to the US could mean total nuclear annihilation for the offender. On the other hand, if the head of state is just insane, then all bets are off.

It is not surprising, then, that this narrative is being trotted out yet again in the case of North Korea.

Nuclear deterrence may have worked against Joseph Stalin — who apparently was a super-reasonable and level-headed guy — but Kim Jong-un is just crazy.

Naturally, ultra-hawk John McCain has been at the forefront of this rhetorical effort, calling Kim Jong-un a "crazy fat kid." Later, McCain's daughter got in on the act, calling Kim a "total absolute maniac."

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-09-07/why-war-party-loves-call-f...