More context from Devereaux

Not to put too fine a point on it (and avoiding the question of where regular authoritarianism ends and fascism begins), this highly recommended essay from Bret Devereaux addresses the question of how the Trump administration has managed to screw up the war in Iran on such a spectacular, arguably unprecedented level. While the United States has had military disasters before, I can't think of one so unnecessary or foolish.The cartoonishness of Hegseth certainly highlights the argument that the inadequacies and emotional needs of fascists make them highly unsuited for the roles they see themselves in. Anytime the military leaders of a country are primarily concerned with making themselves look powerful, aggressive, and hyper-masculine, the resulting strategies will be a disaster. And since this personality type is almost by definition incapable of admitting errors, let alone serious introspection, these disasters will only grow worse with time. From (On the Military Failures of Fascism)…