An Anniversary to Remember
Tomorrow is the one hundredth anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. I think it would do us well to consider the terror that was unleashed by that event. Here are some pictures, one from the first battle of the Marne, and one from probably the most horrific battle of the war, the final struggle for Passchendaele.
The true end of the Victorian era, when people discovered that technology was not going to usher in a world of peace and plenty previously unknown.
So many people still seem unable to face the fact that this is not a good thing, no matter what the outcome. They still call for war every chance they get, oblivious to the fact that once it gets started no one knows what will happen. In 1914, great majorities on both sides were confident that war would lead to their quick victory. We've had our taste of that in Iraq the last decade or so, and yet still the dogs of war howl. And there seems to be no way to get them to accept the consequences of their blood lust.
So many people still seem unable to face the fact that this is not a good thing, no matter what the outcome. They still call for war every chance they get, oblivious to the fact that once it gets started no one knows what will happen. In 1914, great majorities on both sides were confident that war would lead to their quick victory. We've had our taste of that in Iraq the last decade or so, and yet still the dogs of war howl. And there seems to be no way to get them to accept the consequences of their blood lust.
Comments
Nah. We won't remember.
Germany had an axe to grind from the time of the Franco-Prussian war long before the archduke took his first baby steps. The assassination was Kaisar Wilhelm's 9/11. Obviously, no nation mobilzes troops and materiel on that massive of a scale without years of preparation. Want to know who will start WWIII? See who's preparing for it.
How do you stop people who want to kill each other?
Will Israel and Iran fight ISIS together? America and Russia fought Hitler together.
It was Churchill himself who drew the lines and he had no clue on how to stop the killing between the tribes of that part of the world that had been going on for centuries.
Is it possible to protect our own land from attack without getting involved in foreign wars? History says no.
In both WWI and WWII Americans were isolationists. We joined both wars late and of course were attacked in WWII.
Our military levels should reflect the tensions in the world. We don't need to go looking for war, or lie ourselves into a war, war finds us.