RD2003
Got a really fucking shitty attitude
Interesting article from 2016 on the permanence of war, and the failure of ideological resolutions. Bloodshed was our past, bloodshed is our future...
We live and die by our illusions. Despite the bullshit rhetoric, Ukraine is just a big(ish) war in a world where war has no end. It gets so much attention because of the geopolitical importance of Ukraine's (unfortunate) geographical position. But when this shit is over, more shit will be along soon, although it won't be presented to us as a war for civilised values or some such nonsense if it's (as it usually is these days) in a part of the world that doesn't matter. The body count will be just as big, if not bigger, though.
ips-dc.org
'Twenty-five years ago, the Cold War ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Thereafter, we were supposed to embark on a path of peace and prosperity. But somehow, we lost our way. We tripped. We fell. And now we find ourselves, like Jason Smith, face down in the snow. If we’re lucky, we’ll get pulled out in the nick of time, our various traumas frozen in suspended animation. We will have lost something in the process, but we will survive.'
'The world is awash in weapons. The volume of major weapons transfers went up 16 percent between 2010 and 2014 compared to the previous four-year period, and the United States is the leading driver of the $76 billion industry. Arms supplied to one faction often end up in the hands of its enemies, making arms embargos and targeted weapons transfers nearly impossible. And just as we have an explosion of shootings in the United States because of the availability of handguns, wars are much more likely to start, continue, and resist resolution because young men continue to have access to truckloads of sophisticated weaponry.'
'Superpowers like the United States and would-be superpowers like Russia and Turkey are determined to achieve their goals by force. The United States continues to practice a la carte multilateralism, supporting only those international efforts that intersect with its national interests. As long as Washington continues to rule by drone, forget about a robust international rule of law and the institutions required to uphold it. And don’t expect other countries to do anything other than follow the leader.'
We live and die by our illusions. Despite the bullshit rhetoric, Ukraine is just a big(ish) war in a world where war has no end. It gets so much attention because of the geopolitical importance of Ukraine's (unfortunate) geographical position. But when this shit is over, more shit will be along soon, although it won't be presented to us as a war for civilised values or some such nonsense if it's (as it usually is these days) in a part of the world that doesn't matter. The body count will be just as big, if not bigger, though.
Are We Incapable of Ending Wars?
In a world awash with weak states, powerful weapons, and crumbling institutions, conflicts can easily continue for generations — and perhaps never end.
ips-dc.org
'Twenty-five years ago, the Cold War ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Thereafter, we were supposed to embark on a path of peace and prosperity. But somehow, we lost our way. We tripped. We fell. And now we find ourselves, like Jason Smith, face down in the snow. If we’re lucky, we’ll get pulled out in the nick of time, our various traumas frozen in suspended animation. We will have lost something in the process, but we will survive.'
'The world is awash in weapons. The volume of major weapons transfers went up 16 percent between 2010 and 2014 compared to the previous four-year period, and the United States is the leading driver of the $76 billion industry. Arms supplied to one faction often end up in the hands of its enemies, making arms embargos and targeted weapons transfers nearly impossible. And just as we have an explosion of shootings in the United States because of the availability of handguns, wars are much more likely to start, continue, and resist resolution because young men continue to have access to truckloads of sophisticated weaponry.'
'Superpowers like the United States and would-be superpowers like Russia and Turkey are determined to achieve their goals by force. The United States continues to practice a la carte multilateralism, supporting only those international efforts that intersect with its national interests. As long as Washington continues to rule by drone, forget about a robust international rule of law and the institutions required to uphold it. And don’t expect other countries to do anything other than follow the leader.'
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