by Stephen Lendman

He's waging multiple direct and proxy wars. He's done so throughout his tenure.

He's a war criminal multiple times over. He's got lots more death and destruction in mind.

On Wednesday, he'll deliver a nationwide televised address. A White House Press Secretary statement said:

"The President will deliver an address to the nation from the State Floor of the White House Wednesday night at 9:00 PM EDT to discuss with the American people the threat posed by ISIL and to lay out the United States’ strategy for degrading and ultimately destroying the terrorist group."

The New York Times said he'll "present (the) case for broader US mission against militants," saying:

He's "seeking to rally support for a broad military mission while reassuring the public he is not plunging American forces into another Iraq war."

On Sunday, he told NBC's Meet the Press he's "preparing the country to make sure that we deal with (an Islamic State) threat…"

"What I want people to understand is that over the course of months, we are going to be able to not just blunt (IS's) momentum."

"We are going to systematically degrade (its) capabilities. We're going to shrink the territory that they control; and, ultimately, we're going to defeat them."

"This is not going to be an announcement about U.S. ground troops. This is not the equivalent of the Iraq war."

He left unexplained involvement of US special forces, CIA operatives and likely FBI ones. They're part of all US direct and proxy wars.

Asked if he's "preparing the country" for more conflict, his response was a virtual yes.

"I’m preparing the country to make sure that we deal with a threat from ISIL," he said.

No threat exists. Hyped ones substitute. They invented out of whole cloth.

Islamic State hoards don't threaten America. Claiming otherwise turns truth on its head. Managed news misinformation persists.

Propaganda wars precede hot ones. Big Lies drown out truth. War-mongering sabotages peace.

Fear-mongering enlists public support for what demands condemnation.

For the third time since January 1991, America is at war with Iraq. It continues lawlessly.

No nation may attack another except in self-defense. None may do so without Security Council authorization.

None exists. Expect none forthcoming. Obama lied claiming authorization to attack Islamic State fighters.

Lack of Security Council sole authority aside, the War Powers Resolution (WPR) lets presidents act unilaterally for 60 days.

It authorizes another 30 days to disengage. It does it short of congressional assent to continue.

WPR is clear and unequivocal, stating:

"The constitutional powers of the President as Commander-in-Chief to introduce United States Armed Forces into hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, are exercised only pursuant to (1) a declaration of war, (2) specific statutory authorization, or (3) a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces."

Fact: No declaration of war exists.

Fact: Expect none forthcoming.

Fact: None is justifiable.

Fact: No statutory authorization exists.

Fact: Or national emergency because hostile forces attacked America, its territories, possessions or armed forces.

Fact: Obama's war on Islamic State fighters is lawless aggression.

Fact: America's last legal war was WW II.

Fact: The official story buried important truths.

Fact: Roosevelt manipulated Japan to attack America.

Fact: Doing so let him wage war.

Fact: He convinced Congress to go along.

Fact: He turned pacifist Americans into raging Japan haters.

Fact: US intelligence tracked its fleet across the Pacific.

Fact: Pearl Harbor's commander Admiral HE Kimmel wasn't warned.

Fact: He was denied intelligence.

Fact: Enlisting public support requires mass casualties. WW II followed.

Fact: Washington's Afghan war followed the same script.

Fact: David Ray Griffin called it "The New Pearl Harbor: Disturbing Questions About the Bush Administration and 9/11."

Fact: Big Lies drowned out truths.

Fact: All wars are based on misinformation, deception and Big Lies.

Fact: They include America's wars on Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Ukraine, Iraq again, and US complicity in all Israeli conflicts.

Official reasons for attacking Islamic State fighters don't wash. It has nothing to do with with humanitarian intervention. Or responsibility to protect.

Or protecting national security. Or safeguarding US personnel. Or spreading democratic values. Or championing right over wrong.

It's the oil, stupid. Iraq has huge reserves. It's protecting Big Oil's divine right to exploit them.

It's Washington wanting unchallenged regional control. It's making the world safe for war-profiteers.

It's pillage on a grand scale. It's disenfranchising whole populations. It's turning workers into serfs.

It's prioritizing capital's divine right. It's America's dark side writ large. It's got nothing to do with internal or external threats.

It's Obama's latest foray. Mission creep may follow. Perhaps another quagmire. Expect ordinary Iraqis to suffer most.

Syrians are hugely vulnerable. Obama wants regime change. The Islamic State is the pretext.

It's a US creation. It's Washington's ally and enemy in different war theaters.

Bashar al-Assad is the target. So is Syrian sovereignty.

Post-9/11, Washington ravaged one regional country after another. Wherever America shows up, mass slaughter and destruction follow.

Countries are turned into cauldrons of violence. Peace is a convenient illusion. America's wars beget more of them. An endless destructive cycle persists.

Imperialism works this way. It's an existential threat. It's a fundamental evil. It's a humanity-consuming monster.

Obama's new war could last years. It may continue long after he's gone. Military planners envision at least 36 months. Maybe longer.

Spreading it cross-border assures more death, destruction and human misery.

The New York Times claims what's planned "has no obvious precedent." Obama rules out ground troops. At least so far.

Except for hundreds of special forces. And CIA operatives. Perhaps FBI ones.

Attacks won't be limited to drone strikes. Unlike NATO's rape of Yugoslavia, war won't be limited to 78 intense bombing days.

Washington won't lead from behind. It plans a central role in attacking Iraq and Syria.

It wants participating coalition partners. It wants other nations involved in lawless aggression. In mass slaughter and destruction.

According to an unnamed administration official, "(e)verybody is on board Iraq. But when it comes to Syria, there's more concern."

According to The Times:

"Mr. Obama's planned speech suggests he may be moving closer to a decision on many remaining questions, including whether and at what point the White House might widen the air campaign to include targets across the border in Syria…"

It bears repeating. ISIS/ISIL/IS is the pretext. Assad is the target. Regime change is the objective.

So is unchallenged regional control en route to extending it globally.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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