Why America went to war and who really benefited – Part I

Here’s why America went to war in the 20th century and how power, profit, and empire—not freedom—drove U.S. involvement from World War I to the Gulf.

The textbooks in government schools don’t tell the whole story. America’s wars in the 20th century weren’t about liberty or defense. They were about power, profit, control, and empire. Washington never sent troops overseas to spread democracy, but to protect economic interests, build alliances of convenience, and expand the state.

If you think my military science fantasy, Wind Wielder, exaggerates the reach of imperialism, take a look at the wars your government actually fought. The Tamurian Empire (based on the British and American Empires) looks tame compared to the real machine.

World War I: Power grabs and central planning

Woodrow Wilson ran for reelection in 1916 with the promise “He kept us out of war.” Shortly thereafter, he dragged the country into World War I. Why? Because the U.S. already tilted the playing field in favor of the Allies—arming merchant ships, cutting ties with Germany, and loaning billions to Britain and France.

The Mises Institute explains it bluntly: Wilson entered the war to protect banks and bonds, not freedom. And while soldiers bled in Europe, the U.S. government seized the opportunity to build a planned economy at home. “War collectivism” allowed the state to partner with big business, crush dissent, and set the stage for the next century of corporatism.

World War II: A new world order by design

Most people believe the U.S. entered World War II only after Pearl Harbor. That’s technically true. But behind the scenes, America already picked sides and wanted to reshape the global order.

Franklin Roosevelt used the war to centralize power, grow government bureaucracy, and lay the foundation for the United Nations. This war gave the military-industrial complex its teeth and brought the Cold War with it. The U.S. built an empire not out of defense as they claim, but out of ambition.

Vietnam War: Credibility over clarity

The Vietnam War was about saving face as opposed to saving South Vietnam. U.S. leaders feared that if they didn’t act, the world would see weakness. So they doubled down on a losing strategy.

America bombed, burned, and brutalized Vietnam without a clear goal. Hundreds of thousands died so politicians could prove how serious they were about stopping communism. Vietnam served no strategic purpose, but one grounded in theory. It also exposed the rot inside the U.S. foreign policy machine.

Iran-Iraq War: Bleeding both sides

During the brutal Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s, the U.S. sided with Iraq. Washington didn’t care about Saddam Hussein’s atrocities. It cared about containing Iran after the 1979 revolution and has only escalated tensions since.

The U.S. sent Iraq intelligence, economic aid, and dual-use technology. It even looked the other way when Saddam used chemical weapons. U.S. policy effectively prolonged the conflict by supporting Iraq while avoiding a decisive outcome. This strategy comes straight from the empire’s playbook: divide and exploit.

Soviet-Afghan War: Creating the next enemy

In the 1980s, the U.S. armed Afghan mujahideen to bleed the Soviet Union. American policymakers called it a Cold War win. In reality, they helped birth the very jihadists who would later declare war on the West.

José Niño of the Mises Institute lays it out clearly—America’s funding of the Afghan resistance produced unintended consequences, including the rise of extremist networks like al-Qaeda.

Blowback isn’t a myth. It’s the rule, and every war creates the next one.

Gulf War I: Oil and optics

The first Gulf War had nothing to do with liberating Kuwait. It had everything to do with protecting oil flow and flexing American muscle in the Middle East.

Murray N. Rothbard explained there was a lot going on behind closed doors. The war ended quickly, but it opened the door for decades of U.S. involvement in the region. Sanctions, no-fly zones, and troops stayed behind, laying the groundwork for 9/11 and Iraq War II.

The goal was never stability. It was always dominance.

Every war fuels the empire. Each conflict becomes the excuse for the next

Matthew Petti at Reason Magazine calls out the real problem. The political class refuses to tell the truth about war. They hide behind slogans and flag-draped speeches while locking the country into endless interventions.

Ted Galen Carpenter at the Ron Paul Institute highlights the pattern: Illegal wars, unauthorized strikes, and fake alliances that serve elites, not the public.

Stephen Kinzer at the Future of Freedom Foundation reminds readers that the state loves war because it creates fear, distraction, and profit.

And ZeroHedge ties it all together: American foreign policy creates chaos, then complains about the consequences. Refugees, terrorism, and oil shortages are all symptoms of a machine that never stops moving.

I already wrote this story several times in the Renegades Epic

In my shared universe, empires manipulate truth, control resources, and use force to shape obedience. That’s an exact allegory of American foreign policy.

Sion Zona wakes up. He refuses to serve the system once he sees the truth—even if it takes him a while to get there. Readers who see what’s really happening won’t accept those lies, either.

They need stories that speak the truth, and Wind Wielder delivers that truth in the form of revelation, as does every work in the Renegades Epic shared universe. Get Wind Wielder