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The Unintended Consequences of One’s Actions

in Iraq. “ISIL is a direct outgrowth of Al Qaeda in Iraq
that grew out of our invasion, which is an example of
unintended consequences, which is why we should
generally aim before we shoot.”
During the tenure of former President Bush, America
attacked Iraq with great military might on March 19,
2003. One and a half years before the attack, when
there was news that the US might invade Iraq, I gave
prior warning in an interview to The Times of India,
(September 16, 2001) that the U.S. aggression would be
counter-productive. And later events were to bear out
my prediction.

There are few human beings, whether belonging to
the political field or not, who have not taken such steps
as have been counterproductive in their outcome. That
is, the action taken lead to a negative result, which had
not been anticipated. This is true not only of the United
States, but is perhaps the story of many countries and
individuals in positions of power throughout history.
One of the greatest human weaknesses is the tendency
for people to overestimate their own capacities. Because
of this, they take such steps as are unlikely to lead to the
fulfilment of their expectations. It is a matter of record
that human history is regularly punctuated by stories
of defeat or Pyrrhic victories. Perhaps, there has never
been any victory which could be called an out and out
victory.

The fact is that of the different kinds of socio-political
and religious factors that are of significance in this
world, there are some which work in our favour and

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