America's Next Forever War: Why a Military Confrontation with Iran Would Make Iraq Look Like a Rehearsal
Reuters revealed on February 13 that the US military is preparing for "sustained, weeks-long operations" against Iran — not a one-night bombing run like June 2025's Midnight Hammer, but a prolonged campaign targeting state and security facilities beyond nuclear sites. Two US officials, speaking anonymously, confirmed the Pentagon "fully expects Iran to retaliate," leading to "back-and-forth
strikes and reprisals over a period of time." The disclosure came the same day the Pentagon ordered a second aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, to join the USS Abraham Lincoln already stationed in the region. Hours later, at the Munich Security Conference, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that the old world order "no longer exists." It was a remarkably candid admission — not of American
strength, but of a superpower that has abandoned even the pretense of multilateralism, international law, or diplomatic credibility. Rubio, who earlier told Congress that Iran is "weaker than it has ever been," simultaneously demanded a military deployment "capable of responding to and attacking Iran." The contradiction tells you everything: if Iran is so weak, why does the world's largest
military need two carrier strike groups, stealth bombers, and thousands of additional troops? The answer is that Iran is not weak. It is a nation of 88 million people spread across 1.6 million square kilometers — four times the size of Iraq. Its terrain ranges from mountain ranges exceeding 5,000 meters to dense urban centers to 2,440 kilometers of coastline along the Persian Gulf and Gulf of