The 82nd Airborne Division has cancelled all its training exercises and has been put in an elevated state of readiness.

Now, some people speculate that this could mean the division will be tasked with a (probably limited) ground operation in Iran, but I don’t think so.

First of all, putting boots on the ground in Iran would be far too dangerous for any U.S. ground force. There have been no visible preparations indicating that the U.S. military is assembling an invasion force large enough to protect itself. You would see that on commercially available satellite footage, and in the age of the internet and smartphones, this would be impossible to hide.

“All the way-Airborne!” A soldier of the famous “All-American” 82nd Airborne Division during a training exercise. (picture: US Army)

On the other hand, not only Trump but the entire U.S. administration has gone insane. They are completely out of control, and the so often cited “guardrails of American democracy” have been compromised and have failed. The adults have left the room. In such an utterly dangerous situation, anything is possible, including American boots on the ground.

However, I think the 82nd is probably set on alert to intervene in an eventual crisis in one of the Gulf States, for example, to assist in evacuating American troops and civilians there (although the U.S. government does not seem to care much about its citizens stranded in that region). Bahrain, with a high percentage of Shia Muslims in the population, could be where such a mission takes place.

Let’s hope that at least in the U.S. military, there are some leaders left with a spine who know when to refuse criminally stupid orders. Otherwise, the USA will be doomed.