One major political reason as to why a forever war can occur is due to the lack of democracy in a country , as this makes a country more likely to become engulfed in a civil war . Politically , forever wars can occur in order to keep money flowing into institutions , such as the Military-Industrial-Congressional Complex ( MICC ) . Thus , forever wars can serve as domestic political engines . The continuous changes in capitalism in globalized markets influences policy makers . This , in turn , causes the policy makers to promote policies of continuing and expanding wars . As well , forever wars can be used by small armed groups in an attempt to wear down a larger group or country . For example , in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the beginning of the War on Terror , Al-Qaeda attempted to get the United States involved in a prolonged guerrilla war in Afghanistan , or in other words a forever war . The reason for this was to destroy American will to fight such a long war , and ultimately force the United States to not only withdraw from Afghanistan , but from the Middle East as well . Thus , forever wars can be started in an attempt to achieve political goals for armed groups
9/11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Forever war