It has been gradually building towards the inevitable: Australia entering the fray in the Middle East again this time to fight Iran in another war in which it is not threatened.

After a phone call from U.S. President Donald Trump two nights ago, Prime Minister Albanese hassent our militaryto the Middle East to join the conflict.

Ostensibly, it is to protect the United Arab Emirates from Iranian drones and missiles, though why that is our responsibility is unstated. And now we have joined the fray,in a warwe do not lead, we are in our usual position: under the direction of our imperial masters. In this case, the U.S., as is now usually the case, except now, viaproxy, their ownpolitical masters,Israel.

Because this is Israels war,wagging the American dogand we are nothing more than the fleas being thrown every which way, most likely to kingdom come.

If we sacrifice our youth in this needless war, as now seems increasingly likely, with America preparing to commit boots on the ground in an Iranian ground war, it will be the most egregious and senseless in Australias long history of blind subservience.

Fellow Independent Australians, it is with our greatest and most sincere regret that we must inform you that Australia is still not a fully and truly independent nation.

Previously, gung-ho Australia has sent its men into these ancient lands to fight the Ottoman Empire, the Third Reich, the Iraqis (twice) and Afghanistan. In none of these conflicts was Australia even remotely threatened, yet we lost the cream of our youth in droves, dying on those harsh, unforgiving sands.

Only against the Reich, the Nazis, the Germans in World War II, could the war even remotely be called just, but still, Churchill tried to divert our troops in 1941, the valiant Rats fleeing Tobruk repeating the earlier valour of Gallipoli to Burma to defend the British Raj, not the Japanese Empire who were walking up to our door on the Kokoda Trail. In 1941, Prime Minister Curtin separated Australia from the broken defensive shield of Britain, then, only to take up with a new imperial overlord the U.S.A.

What a poisoned chalice that new alliance has been, even from the start.

Because, even with those hardened desert veterans bolstering our conscripted men, the valiant Chocos, in the jungles of New Guinea, Australia fought more than 30,000 Japanese back to the sea, inflicting the Japanese their first defeat of World War II, whilst suffering horrific losses. They did so without next to no assistance from United States forces, apart from some minor mopping-up operations in the last month of this unimaginably arduous 8-month campaign.

General Douglas MacArthur fatefully said, fleeing the Philippines in 1941, I will return. Instead, Australia hasreturned, as a nation, to dutifully follow the United States into every one of its foolish foreign adventures following that World War, into America's proxy wars with China in Korea and Vietnam. In terms of Vietnam, America's quixotic battle against Communism involved the conscription of our precious youth via a death lotto a birth date ballot. And into all its oil-fueled escapades in the Middle East. Three times in the last 35 years.

Now Australia has taken its first few tottering steps into a fourth. One more potentially incendiary than the rest. Will it involve conscripting our youth into fighting another war in which our nation is not threatened? A war that, by the look of current fuel prices, is directly counter to our citizens' and our nation's national interests? Is it the start of another world war, this time with nuclear weapons in the hands of at least two of the parties?

Though not in the hands of Iran. Despite America and Israel'sfirst strike on Iran because of nuclear weapons, the United Nations inspection body, theInternational Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), saidit was not even close to producing the weapons that Trump said they had destroyed by military strikes six months ago.

Weapons that Iran didn't have, were not close to having, and were close to convincing the United States in talks in Oman, by all reports, thedaybefore Trump attacked. The very day beforeAmericas first Tomahawk struck Iran's capital, Tehran, assassinatingits leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as ripping apart175 little Iranian girlsattending schoolthat day thislatter U.S. war crimewas confirmed today.

United Nations experts havecondemned thisunprovoked first strike and this atrocity saying it is a breach of international law. Australia's PM Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong have unconvincingly hedged about its legality,asserting thatitis up toAmerica to decide the matter.

We can be assured the world-based order has broken down if a supposed democracy such as Australia maintains, straight-faced, thatonly the accused murderer, if it is America, can pass judgment upon its own alleged misdeeds. Might now, apparently, make right. So long to the rules-based order.

Trumps strike on Iran signals a shift toward a more volatile world order, where power increasingly overrides restraint.

Worse, rather than getting tired of winning with Donald, Australia is on the less artful side of this dealer.Wehave committed to spending billions on amilitary pact, AUKUS, which involves sending hundreds of billions of dollars to pay for this mafia boss' protection, in somewhat affordable yearly increments, on nuclear submarines and untestedaircraft we have explicitly agreed we may never receive. What a deal!

The money we are sending to the U.S. is so huge, indeed, as perhaps Australia's most distinguished ever bureaucrat,John Menadue, wrote this week, Australia cannot possibly pay America's yearly imperial tribute, as well as afford what is necessary to otherwise defend ourselves.

Wrote Menadue.:

We are at their mercy. This is the gaudy, gilt-edged, gold-leafed poisoned chalice we have chosen to condemn ourselves and future generations to sip. It is why Anthony Albanese takes leering selfies with Trump and late-night calls committing our nation to yet more war, meeklyfollowing this alleged paedophile towards whatever precipice his madness might lead.

We should not commit our troops to another war in the Middle East.

The theocratic regime of Iran is objectionable to Independent Australia, which believes in equality, equity, secularism and democracy. However, its foe, Israel, is another theocratic regime, which is currently engaged in genocide.

We should not pick sides to appease our colonial overlord in a war in which we have no part.It is time to rip up AUKUS, write off whatever we have wasted, put the money into Australia and forge a new and independent path. One that does not sacrifice our treasure, dignity and undervalued self-respect.

Let us not waste another golden generation in another futile war of aggression. Another folly that will yet again simply sink more of the blood of our youth into the ever-thirsty sands of the Holy Lands.

This is an abridged version of anIndependent Australia editorial sent topaid subscribersin the weekly newsletter, which also collates all the stories published by IAthe past week, amongst other features. The full editorial may also be read in themembers only area. You can subscribe to Independent AustraliaHERE.

Follow IA founderDave Donovanon X/Twitter@davroszand [email protected], Independent Australia on [email protected], X/Twitter@independentausand FacebookHERE.

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