One week ago, on Aug. 21, chemical attacks occurred in the Ghouta region of Syria, with fatalities possibly exceeding 1,000. In as little as one day from now, according to senior White House officials, American missiles may start striking Syria. 

The Obama Administration, along with ourEuropean allies, believes that “undeniable” evidence exists that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime was responsible for the chemical attacks. So now, for the first time in the two-and-a-half-year-old civil war in Syria that has taken more than 100,000 lives, American troops are in position and ready to attack Syria. As Secretary of State John Kerry’s address on Monday insinuated, an American attack on Syria is now a matter of “when,” not “whether.”  

However, no official has provided a hint of this “undeniable” evidence, and the situation existing today is creepily similar to that of 10 years ago, when the Bush Administration lied about Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction. The greatest benefactors from the strategic and ethical disaster we remember as the Iraq War were the oil companies and defense contractors that lobbied for it … and on Monday, Lockheed Martin, the United States military’s top defense partner, traded at an all-time high against the background of warhawks in Washington preparing to launch a military strike that will almost certainly kill more civilians than the chemical attacks.  

As for the chemical attacks themselves, although our leaders haven’t given us any proof as to how Assad might be behind them, a simple consideration of the facts makes the notion that the Syrian government committed this atrocity questionable. Assad―and by no means do I consider him (or Hussein, formerly) a respectable leader―already had the upper hand in the conflict with his opposition. Furthermore, if Assad did want to use chemical weapons, it makes no sense that he would do so on women and children rather than on the rebel army fighting him.

Finally, the attack took place the same day United Nations inspectors arrived in Syria―invited by the Syrian government―to investigate earlier claims of chemical weapons use. It would be foolish for Assad to attack his own people that very day … although given the inspectors’ availability to confirm the attacks, it would be a convenient opportunity for Assad’s opponents to justify an international offensive against his government. 

Also, something else the Obama Administration usually glosses over: A considerable portion of this opposition euphemized as the “rebels” is made up of Al-Qaeda. By aiding Assad’s opposition, the U.S. has directly been providing aid to Al-Qaeda. But at the same time, it has still used its same rhetoric from a decade ago to continue the War on Terror abroad, and as unceasing revelations regarding civil liberties crackdowns show, to apparently expand the War on Terror at home. 

The similarities between events in 2003 and what is happening today are “undeniable.” They may not be enough to form dogmatic conclusions about anything going on in Syria or what should be done, but a glance at American history shows that they are more than enough to make any reasonable person deeply wary and skeptical of U.S. intentions right now.

Luckily, the American people do seem to have learned something from the Iraq War. A new Reuters/Ipsos poll shows that only 9 percent of the American public favors U.S. military action in Syria. Yet, the Obama Administration says it’s going to attack Syria.  

It has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in aiding the Syrian opposition, including its own “enemies.” The cost of a single cruise missile, scores of which may well have rained down on the Syrian people by the end of this week, is $900,000. There are enough things that could be done with this money to help the American people. But the Obama Administration still intends to attack Syria.

America’s track record in playing do-gooder is out in the open for everyone to see, even if current goings-on cannot be known with certainty. But it is known that since the unrest of the 2011 Arab Spring, it has been uncertain how the geopolitics of that region will end up for America. And so, looking at American strategic interests, corporate interests and most of all, looking at the ghost of the 2003 invasion, a fair guess can be made: Our politicians are, yet again, lying to us through their teeth, and we’re going to have the blood of innocent thousands on our hands. God bless America.