Part I: The Setup — War Is Always a Signal
Fall 2002.
The world held its breath as the U.S. built a case for invading Iraq.
But on Wall Street, something else was happening.
Defense stocks began to climb—quietly, then urgently.
Halliburton, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin.
Their stock charts told a different story than the headlines.
War wasn’t coming.
War was priced in.
Behind the scenes, defense analysts held closed-door briefings.
Congressional staffers were quietly reallocating assets.
Oil traders started buying options months ahead of the first missile.
Because in finance, war is not tragedy. It’s opportunity.
Part II: The Winners — Who Got Rich?
Halliburton
- Stock rose 300% from 2002 to 2005
- Secured $39.5 billion in government contracts
- No-bid deals under a “wartime exception”
- Former CEO? Vice President Dick Cheney
Lockheed Martin
- Supplied precision-guided bombs and surveillance systems
- Share price doubled during early years of occupation
- Lobbying budget tripled from 2000 to 2006
ExxonMobil & Chevron
- Gained access to post-war oil contracts in Iraq
- Oil prices soared from ~$20 to over $140/barrel (2002–2008)
- Quiet negotiations with provisional Iraqi authorities
Insider Trading?
- Senator Dianne Feinstein’s husband had heavy investments in military contractors
- Multiple Congressional members later found to have “timely” portfolios
- No investigations ever led to prosecution
These weren’t side effects.
They were design features.
Part III: The Losers — Who Paid the Price?
Iraqi Civilians
- Over 100,000 killed
- 9 million displaced
- Infrastructure shattered, economy collapsed
- Birth defects in Fallujah from depleted uranium munitions
🇺🇸 U.S. Soldiers
- 4,500 dead, tens of thousands wounded
- PTSD, suicide, opioid addiction
- Promises of care later delayed or denied by the VA
American Taxpayers
- $2.9 trillion spent over two decades
- Schools closed, hospitals underfunded
- National debt used to bankroll weapons and oil logistics
The Truth
- Media credibility collapsed
- WMDs never found
- Apologies never came
Part IV: This Was a Trade, Not a Tragedy
What if the Iraq War was never about liberation?
Never about 9/11, terrorism, or freedom?
What if it was always just a trade?
An engineered event to transfer public capital into private hands.
To pump stocks.
To seize oil.
To feed contractors.
A lie doesn’t have to be believed by everyone.
Just enough to pass the vote.
To open the market.
To launch the strike.
Part V: The Next Trade Has Already Begun
Look around today.
- Eastern Europe.
- The South China Sea.
- AI warfare.
- Biotech weapons.
Once again, defense stocks are rising.
Oil is volatile.
Politicians are “warning the public”
…as they update their portfolios.
The question isn’t whether another war is coming.
The question is:
Who’s already positioned for it?
