Reply #7: That's the key right there:

[JohnyCanuck]

"And many get quite wealthy with war."

The country as a whole might suffer, but those close to the levers of power find war to be a very profitable enterprise.

The War Profiteers Card Deck exposes some of the real war criminals in the US’s endless War of Terror. This is no Sunday bridge club. These are individuals and institutions that stack the deck against democracy in the rigged game of global power. Exposing their place in the house of cards illuminates the links among corporations, institutions, and government officials that profit from endless war. The US War of Terror is not about liberation, democracy, or UN resolutions. Plainly put, the War of Terror--whether in Iraq, Colombia, Afghanistan, or the USA--is about subjugation, resource extraction, and opening markets: a practice once referred to more honestly as colonialism.

Each suit in this deck represents a category of war profiteers:

Spades: Oil, gas, and energy companies

Hearts: US government officials (because they love you)

Clubs: Military and defense contractors

Diamonds: Heads of industry, finance, media, policy, and hype

http://www.ruckus.org/warprofiteers/