Some of you may be familiar with CoasterDad from the Floyd thread. Here’s another instance where he was incredibly spot on.
A few days after 9/11/01 he said “kids, get in the car, we’re going to Washington D.C.”. You see, the toll roads were not charging tolls in the aftermath of the attacks, and he knew the city would be mostly empty because everyone was still in shock and terrified that more attacks were coming. We enjoyed seeing the monuments, going to a completely empty Six Flags America, and camping at a completely empty campground. We spent much of the trip discussing the state of the world and why America had been targeted.
About a week after 9/11 we were standing in the field across from the still smoldering Pentagon. It is an image that is forever burned in my memory. My dad said “this was a terrible tragedy, but what comes next will be far worse. The US will use this as an excuse to invade Afghanistan, Iraq, and maybe other countries. We will start an unwinnable war that will last a generation. We will spend trillions of dollars to kill innocent brown people in the name of revenge while trying to force democracy into these countries. Ultimately it will be a failed war because the people of Afghanistan don’t want us there, and this will just create more hatred towards the US as we kill their kids.”
Some guy neaby had a large radio tuned in to the news. We heard the breaking story that the US approved an invasion into Afghanistan (I think?). CoasterDad said “kids, now would be a good time to head home.”
It’s a conversation I’ve never forgotten. Seeing it play out exactly how he told me it would 20 years ago has been…something. Sad? Scary? Pathetic? If a random boomer window salesman from New Jersey could predict this so accurately, what the fuck was our government doing thinking this would be a success? I know, I know, it was a success for the corporate interests and military industries. But fuck if this entire disaster wasn’t completely avoidable.
And of course seeing the Republicans flip this as being entirely on the Dems is going to be beyond infuriating, because it will work.