Pro-war voices are misleading Americans about the U.S.-Israel war with Iran through propaganda and conflicts of interest
Source: Joseph Addington. "Today’s Handmaidens of War - The American Conservative." March 25, 2026. www.theamericanconservative.com
The Gist
The author argues that the same people who misled Americans about the Iraq War are now doing it again with the Iran war. They're using scare tactics, have financial reasons to support war, and are lying about how badly the war is actually going.
Conclusion
Current pro-war advocates are deliberately misleading the American public about the U.S.-Israel war with Iran through propaganda, financial conflicts of interest, and ideological extremism, just as they did during the Iraq War
Premises
- Many current pro-war advocates were also cheerleaders for the Iraq War and used similar misleading tactics then
- Pro-war voices include ideological extremists who use McCarthyist tactics to silence dissent and label opponents as traitors
- Think tank experts promoting the war have undisclosed financial ties to defense contractors who profit from prolonged conflict
- Retired military officers appearing on media have conflicts of interest through their work with defense companies
- Pro-war commentators are making claims that contradict observable reality on the ground in the conflict
- The war is actually going poorly, with Iran successfully striking targets and causing economic disruption despite claims of success
- These advocates use the same propaganda techniques as previous wars, conflating opposition with disloyalty to America
Assumptions
- The current U.S.-Israel war with Iran is a strategic disaster similar to the Iraq War
- Financial conflicts of interest significantly bias expert analysis and media commentary
- Public accountability can prevent future propaganda campaigns if applied effectively
- Media outlets should disclose experts' financial ties to defense contractors
- Historical patterns of war propaganda repeat across different conflicts