Don ' t forget the time we overthrew Iran ' s democratically elected , nonreligious , nonmilitaristic prime minister and reinstated the Shah ! Which then led to an even more violent revolution that turned the country into a literal theocracy . Which then triggered Sadam Hussein to declare war on Iran resulting in the longest and deadliest percapita war of the 20 th century . Which decimated the economies of both nations , forcing Sadam to resort to more brutal and militaristic policies to maintain power . Which led to us invading Iraq , overthrowing Sadam , banishing all of his Ba ' athist supporters , and trying to rebuild the government with people who had no governmental or military experience whatsoever . Which made the whole country easy pickings for the exiled Ba ' athists , who had reformed under the banner of ISIS , leading to the mess we have today ! But that Iranian oil money suuuure was worth it !