Prediction for 2014: War Will Continue to Find A Way
War has much been on my mind lately, with a scene from "Gone with the Wind" flashing through my brain. It's when Ashley Wilkes, the paragon of honor and decency, reflects on war: "Most of the miseries of the world were caused by wars," Wilkes says. "And when the wars were over, no one ever knew what they were about."
Powerful words coming from a Southern cavalier who went off to do his duty in the "War Between the States." Interestingly, the South often called it "the war of northern aggression," whereas the North used "the war of southern rebellion." War is a remarkably protean thing, and often completely unpredictable in its duration and effects. We often can't even agree how to name it.
Here's a repost from the end of 2013, nine distant years ago. Who could have predicted America's Afghan War would finally be over, only to be replaced by a new Cold War and massive weapons shipments to Ukraine in a war with Russia that could also last for years, spreading miseries for reasons that are already disputed and which may yet prove unfathomable.