Endless crisis

Overview

An endless crisis is some sort of crisis on the national level where the nation is neither in immediate peril nor able to cease involvement. Such crises are used by the administration to justify enormous expenditures and creeping (or leaping, in some cases) expansion of executive power.

Recent examples include the War on Terror (2001-) (including the US Invasion of Iraq (2003-)), the War on Drugs, and the Vietnam War (1965-1973).

Quotes

• From Four Corners, 2006-09-11 (Australian Broadcasting Service):

  JOHN HOWARD, PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIA: I think Western democracy will triumph. I am very positive, but I believe that the fight against terrorism will go on for a long time.

  JAMES WOOLSEY, CIA DIRECTOR 1993-1995: Decades. Like the Cold War - decades.

  LIZ JACKSON (interviewer): A war without end?

  PROF. RASHID KHALIDI, ARAB STUDIES, COLUMBIA UNI, NY: Well, if these people continue to wage it, yes.

  ROBERT RICHTER, MELBOURNE BARRISTER: If we continue with rhetoric, and continue to erode exactly that for which we are fighting, then the terrorists are winning. That's my greatest fear.