The Mirage of Victory: How Fukuyama's 'End of History' Led to Never Ending Conflict
America's elites are again giddy with horrific brinkmanship in the name of Liberal Democracy. It's time for the endless strife and power struggles to end. Iran is not our problem.
In 1992, Francis Fukuyama published The End of History and the Last Man, a book-length treatment of his 1989 essay in the neocon foreign and security policy rag National Interest1. Fukuyama triumphally declared that ‘Liberal Democracy’2 was the terminal evolution of human social and political ideology; monarchy, fascism, communism, and democracy were all finally defeated.
A third of a century later, with America looking to topple the final country on the Project for a New American Century’s (PNAC) hitlist3, we can conclude that ‘Liberal Democracy’ is not the conclusion of history. It is the motive power for chronic ideological instability, the erosion of freedom, the diminishing consent of the governed, and incitement of multipolar conflict.
Fukuyama’s declared ideological victors happened to be his peers, concentrated in a few blocks in Washington, D.C.. They were desperate to manufacture a sustainable continuation of the Cold War, which was itself an extension of WWII. President Dwight Eisenhower realized this crew was a shadow state, which he named the "military-industrial complex".
Fukuyama laid one of the earliest courses of the intellectual foundation for the concept of “benevolent global hegemony4,” where America would enforce, through hard and soft power, the promotion and adoption of the type of Liberal Democracy that benefited its elite, their vendors, and clients5. Much of the framework for this “benevolence” relied on twinning foreign military adventurism with radical free trade as a lever to ratchet down labor costs at home further, while penetrating new markets, all for the sake of their friends and benefactors in the transnational corporations. After all, recovering the lost war spending of the 1980s was critical to wealth accumulation and power games.
“Today the lack of a visible threat to U.S. vital interests or to world peace has tempted Americans to absentmindedly dismantle the material and spiritual foundations on which their national well-being has been based. They do not notice that potential challengers are deterred before even contemplating confrontation by their overwhelming power and influence.
The ubiquitous post-Cold War question -- where is the threat? -- is thus misconceived. In a world in which peace and American security depend on American power and the will to use it, the main threat the United States faces now and in the future is its own weakness. American hegemony is the only reliable defense against a breakdown of peace and international order. The appropriate goal of American foreign policy, therefore, is to preserve that hegemony as far into the future as possible. To achieve this goal, the United States needs a neo-Reaganite foreign policy of military supremacy and moral confidence.” Toward a Neo-Reaganite Foreign Policy
Consequently, instead of spending its Cold War dividends at home, America was conscripted to a belligerent imperialist undertaking6 architected and shepherded by PNAC. The American project was closely aligned with an earlier policy presentation to Israel’s newly elected Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, recommending a “clean break” for the Jewish ethnostate. It was authored by the same dual loyalty7 American neocons whose multiple wars have killed millions and robbed American youth of opportunities their grandparents assumed were a perpetual inheritance. Netanyahu and Likud certainly took the advice to heart and have recast Israel in the image of that ‘clean break’ advice.
There was an alternative with the original America First movement that would have stopped the forever war ghouls cold. However, the institutions would never allow Pat Buchanan to beat Bob Dole in 1992, despite his surprise in the New Hampshire primary. He was too much of a threat, so he had to be branded an isolationist, a kook, and an anti-Semite whenever he risked catching the ear of too many voters. He understood the moment and the threat after the Cold War more clearly than most, but the opportunity has left us.
“Our resolve is to put America First, to make America First again, and to keep America First. For 50 years, we have liberated, defended, and aided nations all over the world. It was the right and just thing to do. But, now, we must begin to look out for the forgotten Americans right here in the United States….
Pat Buchanan, Putting and Keeping America First
Now, we are apparently on the brink of going to war with Iran, again, not just covertly using Israel as cover, but eager to drop bombs with our own planes. It will be one more war added to a mostly indefensible list of sticking our noses into other people’s business. To make matters worse, it is being framed as a Millenarian war that requires Christians to “bless Israel” by going to war for it.
The language of the Christian Dispensationalists is every bit as demented as Twelver Shi’a begging for an apocalypse to roll out the red carpet for the “Hidden Imam,” the Mahdi, who will be followed by Jesus and a final judgement to set up a just Islamic state on earth and punish the wicked. If that mix isn’t sufficiently combustible, Orthodox Jews and gullible Christian allies are preparing to build the Third Temple and breed a red heifer for a purification that can redeem the world (move over, Jesus…).
Source: https://x.com/BugenhagenCon/status/1935380391722131638
Source: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114698784693311065
America has no business in Iran, just as it had no business in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Lebanon, Yemen, Ukraine, or most of the places listed below. We have fought too many wars, killed too many innocents, and sacrificed too many citizens.
For once, can it stop? If Iran kicks off seriously, China will move on Taiwan. Are you ready to absorb the death toll from one or more aircraft carriers that could get taken out8? I’m not. Russia and China would be delighted to have America bogged down for decades in another nation-building folly.
Conclusion
Fukuyama’s arrogant proclamation was wrong thirty years ago, and it will also be in another thirty years. History never ends; it persists until the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Fukuyama’s vision of Liberal Democracy was not just hubristic and premature but lethally flawed. Far from stabilizing the world, pursuing "benevolent global hegemony" has unleashed chaos, much of which was deliberately and callously manufactured on the backs of ordinary Americans who are poorer in every way for the scheming.
The intertwining of foreign entanglements, military adventurism, and greedy globalization, championed by a corporate and political power elite for its exclusive advantage, can only be described as a policy of war by exploitation. Indeed, history has not ended; it has accelerated, exposing the criminal failure of the Liberal Democracy project.
Restoring Godly freedom, regaining stability, recovering prosperity, and honoring America’s extraordinary heritage is still remotely possible, but not if our oligarchic kleptocracy continues.
Timeline of U.S. Military Interventions Abroad Since 1945
1947–1949: Greek Civil War
The U.S. provided military and economic aid to the Greek government to counter communist insurgents, marking an early Cold War intervention to contain Soviet influence.
1950–1953: Korean War
The U.S. led a UN coalition to support South Korea against a North Korean invasion, resulting in a stalemate and the establishment of the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Approximately 36,000 U.S. troops died.
1953: Iran (Operation Ajax)
The CIA bribed politicians, organized mobs, spread propaganda, and paid demonstrators to pose as communists to incite unrest. Kermit Roosevelt Jr. led the operation, which culminated in a military coup.
Mosaddeq was overthrown, and the Shah’s pro-Western regime was installed. It ruled until the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The coup fueled long-term anti-U.S. sentiment in Iran.
1954: Guatemala (Operation PBSUCCESS)
President Jacobo Árbenz’s land reforms threatened the United Fruit Company, a U.S. firm with ties to Eisenhower’s administration. The CIA portrayed Árbenz as a communist. It trained a 480-man rebel force under Carlos Castillo Armas, conducted psychological warfare (radio propaganda), and sabotaged infrastructure to produce a coup.
Árbenz was ousted, and Castillo Armas became a military dictator, leading to decades of civil war and ~200,000 deaths.
1954: First Taiwan Strait Crisis
U.S. deployed naval forces to support Taiwan against Chinese threats, including the defense of Quemoy and Matsu islands.
1955–1975: Vietnam War (including Laos and Cambodia)
U.S. supported South Vietnam against communist North Vietnam, escalating from advisors to full-scale combat. Massive bombing campaigns extended to Laos and Cambodia (e.g., Cambodian Campaign, 1970). Over 58,000 U.S. deaths and millions of local casualties. Ended with the fall of Saigon in 1975.
1957–1958: Indonesia (Operation HAWK/Permesta Rebellion)
President Sukarno’s neutral stance in the Cold War and hosting of the Non-Aligned Movement alarmed the U.S. The CIA aimed to overthrow him.
The CIA funded and armed rebel military officers in the Permesta Rebellion, using Civil Air Transport (CAT) to bomb civilian and military targets. CIA pilot Allen Pope was captured.
The rebellion failed, Sukarno remained in power until 1967, and U.S. involvement was exposed, damaging its regional credibility.
1958: Lebanon Crisis
The U.S. deployed 14,000 troops to stabilize Lebanon during a political crisis and prevent leftist insurgencies.
1960–1961: Congo (Operation Congo)
Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba’s neutralist policies and Soviet ties concerned the U.S. during the Congo Crisis post-independence.
The CIA plotted Lumumba’s assassination (e.g., poisoned toothpaste) and supported pro-U.S. figures like Joseph Mobutu. Lumumba was killed by local forces with CIA backing.
Mobutu rose to power, ruling as a U.S.-backed dictator until 1997, with Congo facing decades of instability.
1960–1996: Guatemala
The U.S. provided military support to anti-communist regimes, including training and aid during the Guatemalan Civil War, contributing to significant human rights abuses.
1962: Dominican Republic (Operation TRUJILLO)
Dictator Rafael Trujillo’s brutal regime, including ethnic cleansing, strained U.S. relations. The CIA sought his removal to prevent a communist takeover.
The CIA supplied pistols and carbines to dissidents, knowing their intent to assassinate Trujillo. He was ambushed and killed.
Trujillo’s death led to instability, culminating in a 1965 U.S. invasion to prevent a perceived communist threat.
1961: Bay of Pigs Invasion (Cuba)
CIA-backed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro’s government using Cuban exiles. The invasion failed, escalating U.S.-Cuba tensions.
1962: Cuban Missile Crisis
The U.S. naval blockade of Cuba in response to Soviet missile deployments was a non-combat intervention that nearly led to nuclear war.
1963: South Vietnam (Operation Diem Coup)
President Ngo Dinh Diem’s crackdown on Buddhists and corruption alienated U.S. allies.
The CIA supported South Vietnamese generals plotting a coup, providing intelligence and tacit approval. Diem was assassinated.
The coup destabilized South Vietnam, escalating U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.
1963: USA coup - President John F. Kennedy assassinated
The CIA was involved, but the exact details remain murky.
1964: Brazil (Operation Brother Sam)
President João Goulart’s leftist policies alarmed the U.S., which feared a communist shift in Brazil.
The CIA provided funding, propaganda, and naval support to anti-Goulart forces, encouraging a military coup. Goulart was overthrown, and a U.S.-backed military dictatorship ruled until 1985, with ~400 political killings.
1970–1973, Chile (Operation FUBELT/Track II)
President Salvador Allende’s socialist policies threatened U.S. corporate interests (e.g., copper mines). The CIA spent $10 million on propaganda, funded opposition groups, and supported a 1970 coup attempt. It backed economic sabotage and military plotters until 1973.
Allende was overthrown in a 1973 coup led by Augusto Pinochet, who ruled as a dictator, killing ~3,000 and torturing tens of thousands.
1973: Operation Nickel Grass
U.S. airlifted weapons and supplies to Israel during the Yom Kippur War, bolstering its defense against Arab states.
1974: USA coup, President Richard Nixon ousted
Strong evidence of an intelligence operation against Nixon.
1975–2002: Angolan Civil War
The war began as a power struggle over post-colonial governance, exacerbated by Angola’s vast oil and diamond resources. It quickly became a Cold War proxy conflict, with the U.S. and Soviet Union supporting opposing sides to extend their influence in Africa.
1977–1992: Mozambique Civil War
After Mozambique’s independence from Portugal in 1975, the Marxist FRELIMO government, backed by the Soviet Union and Cuba, faced the RENAMO insurgency, supported by South Africa and the U.S. to counter communist influence.
1979–1990: Nicaraguan Civil War
After the Sandinista rebels overthrew the U.S.-backed Somoza regime in 1979, the U.S. funded and trained the Contra rebels to destabilize the socialist Sandinista government, which the Soviet Union and Cuba supported.
1979–1989: Afghan-Soviet War
Soviet Union deployed troops and resources; U.S. (via CIA’s Operation Cyclone), Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia provided billions in aid, arms, and training to the mujahideen.
1980–1988: Iran-Iraq War
Iraq, backed by the U.S., Soviet Union, and Saudi Arabia, invaded Iran to seize territory and weaken its revolutionary regime. Iran, supported by Syria and Libya, fought back, turning the conflict into a prolonged stalemate.
1981–1990, Nicaragua (Operation Contra)
The Sandinista government’s socialist policies and Soviet ties alarmed the Reagan administration, which sought to overthrow it. The CIA armed, trained, and funded the Contra rebels, distributed propaganda manuals, and sabotaged infrastructure. The Iran-Contra affair exposed illegal funding.
The Sandinistas lost elections in 1990, but the war killed ~30,000 and devastated Nicaragua’s economy.
1982–1984: Lebanon Peacekeeping
U.S. deployed Marines as part of a multinational force during the Lebanese Civil War. A 1983 bombing of a U.S. barracks killed 241 American personnel.
1983: Invasion of Grenada (Operation Urgent Fury)
The U.S. invaded Grenada to depose a Marxist government after internal unrest, citing the protection of U.S. citizens. Resulted in free elections but was criticized as overreach.
1986: Operation El Dorado Canyon (Libya)
U.S. airstrikes on Libya in retaliation for a terrorist attack on a Berlin nightclub, targeting Muammar Gaddafi’s regime.
1987–1988: Tanker War (Persian Gulf)
U.S. naval forces protected oil tankers during the Iran-Iraq War, engaging Iranian forces in limited skirmishes.
1989–1990: Invasion of Panama (Operation Just Cause)
The U.S. invaded Panama to depose dictator Manuel Noriega, citing drug trafficking and threats to U.S. interests. Noriega was captured, and a new government was installed.
1990–1991: Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm)
U.S. led a coalition to expel Iraqi forces from Kuwait. Highly successful, with minimal U.S. casualties (148 deaths), but left Saddam Hussein in power.
1992–1995: Somali Civil War (Operation Restore Hope)
U.S. deployed forces for humanitarian aid and to combat warlords. The 1993 Battle of Mogadishu led to 18 U.S. deaths and withdrawal.
1992–1995: Bosnian War
U.S. participated in NATO airstrikes and peacekeeping to end ethnic conflict in the former Yugoslavia. Contributed to the Dayton Agreement.
1994–1995: Haiti Intervention
U.S. invaded to restore President Jean-Bertrand Aristide after a coup, aiming to stabilize the country and prevent refugee flows.
1998–2003: Second Congo War
After the First Congo War ousted Mobutu, Rwanda and Uganda backed rebels (RCD, MLC) to control eastern Congo, while Angola, Zimbabwe, and Namibia supported Laurent Kabila’s government, driven by resource interests (diamonds, coltan) and regional security.
1999: Kosovo War (Operation Allied Force)
The U.S.-led NATO bombing campaign against Serbia was aimed at stopping the ethnic cleansing of Albanians in Kosovo. Criticized for civilian casualties, but led to Serbian withdrawal. It was the first serious conflict with Russia after the end of the Cold War.
2001–2021: War in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom)
The U.S. invaded Afghanistan post-9/11 to dismantle al-Qaeda and remove the Taliban. Longest U.S. war, costing over 2,400 U.S. lives and ending with Taliban resurgence in 2021 and a humiliating U.S. withdrawal.
2002–2023: Yemen
The U.S. conducted drone strikes and special operations against al-Qaeda, beginning with a 2002 strike.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized control of Yemen’s capital, prompting a Saudi-led coalition, supported by the U.S. and UK, to intervene militarily to restore the internationally recognized government. Ongoing support in the Yemeni Civil War.
2003–2011, 2014–2021: Iraq War
The U.S. invaded to overthrow Saddam Hussein, citing weapons of mass destruction (later disproven). Resulted in insurgency and over 4,400 U.S. deaths. Later interventions targeted ISIS, which turned out to be an American creation.
2007–Present: Somalia (Anti-al-Shabab Operations)
The U.S. conducted airstrikes and special operations against al-Shabab militants, with renewed strikes in 2021.
2011: Libyan Civil War (Operation Odyssey Dawn)
U.S.-led NATO airstrikes to enforce a no-fly zone and support rebels against Muammar Gaddafi, leading to his overthrow and subsequent sodomization and murder. The country remains unstable and a center for the shipment of slaves.
Syria, 2011–2017 (Operation Timber Sycamore)
President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, allied with Russia and Iran, faced a 2011 uprising, encouraged by the Obama administration.
The CIA spent ~$1 billion arming and training anti-Assad rebels, including jihadist groups, violating international law, and indirectly leading to the deaths of a U.S. ambassador and members of his protective detail.
The operation prolonged Syria’s civil war, causing ~500,000 deaths and millions to be displaced, but Assad remained in power.
2014–Present: Syrian Civil War (Operation Inherent Resolve)
The U.S. conducted airstrikes and deployed forces against ISIS, with additional strikes on Iranian-backed militias (e.g., February and June 2021). Ongoing limited presence.
2014–Present: Ukraine (Operation Maidan)
President Viktor Yanukovych’s refusal to sign an EU trade deal in 2013 caused the CIA to spin up the Euromaidan color revolution in February 2014.
Yanukovych went into exile, and a pro-Western government took power and began an ethnic cleansing campaign in Ukraine’s Russian speaking provinces. That prompted Russia to annex Crimea, with subsequent further escalation by Kiev and the U.S. announcing that Ukraine would be invited to join NATO. Russia subsequently invaded Ukraine, and NATO forces have been supplying weapons, training, and covert action.
It has also come to light that the U.S. was operating secret biowarfare labs in Ukraine.
? –2024: Gain of Function Research (GOFR)
CIA funded and directed GOFR that resulted in the lab leak of COVID-19, and it appears to have manipulated and amplified the global panic that ensued.
2023–Present: Gaza War
The U.S. provided significant military aid to Israel during its conflict with Hamas and the subsequent cleansing of Gaza’s Arab population. However, direct U.S. combat involvement has been limited or covert.
2025: Iran War
Israel invaded Iran on the recycled pretext of an imminent nuclear threat. The U.S. has provided some weapons, targeting, and intelligence assets.
☩TW☩
Fukuyama defines Liberal Democracy as, "The state that emerges at the end of history is liberal insofar as it recognizes and protects through a system of law man’s universal right to freedom, and democratic insofar as it exists only with the consent of the governed." It is strongly tied to globalization, free trade, and deracinated Western nations.
“This is a memo that describes how we’re going to take out seven countries in five years, starting with Iraq (US invasion 2003), and then Syria (“revolution” 2011), Lebanon (six Israeli invasions since 1978), Libya (NATO invasion 2011), Somalia (US-backed Ethiopian invasion 2006), Sudan (civil war 2011) and, finishing off, Iran (US-backed Israeli attack, 2025).”
Kristol, William; Kagan, Robert (July 1, 1996). "Toward a Neo-Reaganite Foreign Policy". Foreign Affairs. 75 (4): 18. JSTOR 20047656. Reproduced at: https://carnegieendowment.org/posts/1996/07/toward-a-neo-reaganite-foreign-policy?lang=en
This benevolent hegemony is most visible in McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company's destruction of large swathes of the American economy for one more nickel.
"Creative destruction is our middle name, both within our own society and abroad. We tear down the old order every day... Our enemies have always hated this whirlwind of energy and creativity, which menaces their traditions... They cannot feel secure so long as we are there, for our very existence—our existence, not our politics—threatens their legitimacy.” Michael Ledeen, quoted in Laughland, John (June 30, 2003). “Flirting with Fascism”. The American Conservative.
Dual loyalty: the preference for global citizenship and subordination of American interests.
US aircraft carriers can have more than 6,000 sailors and airmen on board.
Amen, Amen!
But Ukraine is based, and is in NATO interest in so far as you have sworn yourself to aid and defend us. This also likely created peace, as no former Warsaw Pact country would remain in the Russian sphere without a fight (nor, by their record centuries long record as murderous, tyrannical, incompetent and reviled, is there any legitimate reason why they should be in charge of Eastern Europe.)