So here we are, standing in the aftermath of a war that was never meant to be ours, a war that many people across this country still cannot explain, still cannot justify, and still cannot understand. A war that began with shifting statements, inconsistent explanations, and a trail of confusion that left the American public asking the same question over and over again: How did we end up here? We were told this conflict was necessary. We were told it was urgent. We were told it was about security, stability, deterrence, pick a word, any word, because the reasons changed with every speech, every briefing, every press release. But when you strip away the noise, when you look past the slogans and the talking points, what remains is a simple truth many Americans feel in their bones: We entered a war that did not belong to us. A war that did not protect us. A war that did not serve us. A war that has cost us lives, money, stability, and credibility, and for what? We failed this war not because our soldier’s lacked courage, not because our people lacked resolve, but because the mission itself was never clear, never coherent, never grounded in the interests of the American public. We failed because we were sent into a conflict shaped by decisions made behind closed doors, decisions that ordinary Americans had no voice in, decisions that carried consequences far beyond what anyone was prepared to face. And now, as the dust settles, we are left with the wreckage, economic, political, strategic, and moral. We are left with the staggering cost, the billions drained from our economy, the bases damaged, the alliances strained, the global balance of power shifting in ways that will echo for years. We are left with a war that weakened us instead of strengthening us, exposed vulnerabilities instead of resolving them, and raised questions instead of providing answers. So we ask, and we have every right to ask, Who put us in this position? Who made the call? Who pushed this country into a conflict that has left us with nothing but loss? Who decided that American families, American workers, American taxpayers should shoulder the burden of a war that did not defend our homeland and did not advance our future? These are not partisan questions. These are not ideological questions. These are questions of accountability, questions every democracy must ask when the cost of a decision is measured in lives, in dollars, in global standing, and in the trust of its own people. We demand answers because we deserve answers. We demand clarity because we paid the price. We demand honesty because the consequences are ours to live with long after the speeches end and the headlines fade. This war did not make us safer. It did not make us stronger. It did not bring us closer to peace. It dragged us into a conflict that drained our resources, damaged our reputation, and left us questioning the very leadership that claimed to act in our name. And so, on behalf of every American who watched this unfold with confusion, frustration, and disbelief, we say this clearly: We want to know why. Why this war? Why this moment? Why this cost? Why this path? Because if we do not demand answers now, if we do not insist on accountability, if we do not learn from this failure, then we risk repeating it again and again, at even greater cost. This is not about blame for the sake of blame. This is about responsibility. This is about truth. This is about ensuring that the next generation does not inherit the consequences of decisions made without transparency, without strategy, and without regard for the people who ultimately pay the price. We failed this war because it was never ours to begin with. And now we demand to know why we were forced to carry it. This is This Week In Palestine!
Bob Funke, Stan Robinson, Stephen R. Low, Sofia Rose Wolman, Juliet Salameh Olivier, Dr. Bethany Marks, Dr. Rana Awwad, Professor Yara Rashid, Tahani Abu Mosa, Abby Masri, Reynad Alghool, and editor Mohammed Alghool
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