Violence... The story so far

Editorial

A favorite tactic of the Panzer Divisions of WWII, pincers that can surround and trap entire armies. Early in the war Hitler rolled over Western Europe, putting army after army in a vise. Later in the East at Stalingrad, the Soviets replied in kind. Hitler's generals saw the danger develop, but, in his egomania, Hitler ordered them to stand fast, never mind that his plans for the East had already come to naught. He hastened his own demise.

And so it is today. Only the context, players and issues differ.

The context of WWIII differs from earlier world-wide conflagrations in that the twin capabilities of nuclear energy and unbridled multiplication of Homo sapiens world-wide have replaced the Panzer divisions. They amount to a pincers movement around humanity and its future. Dunkirk lives in history as a heroic salvation; a trapped army was ignored just long enough to allow it to escape and fight again--effectively. Today, we see but few boats read to take us to safety. Neither the Pope, the plutocrat or theocrat will think kindly of what follows. Consider:

NUKES	BIRTH RATE
Rogue Nations have nukes at the ready. With more to follow, Who can stop them?	Population pressures are boiling over in the poor nations, those least able to cope with the problem. Who will help them?

A solution seems obvious. A schizophrenic leader, somewhere, pulls the nuclear trigger and solves the population problem in a blink. S/he might even establish his/her god as The God, or that there is no anthropomorphic god, but a multitude instead, one for each of the 11 dimensions of the universe.

OK. "Well, OK," a survivor might say: "it was God's will." Or: "There was a maniac out there."

A leader of any politically unstable country (Iran, North Korea, or Pakistan are current possibles) was perhaps born maniacal, or became radical from being goaded beyond endurance.

To repeat: Radicals are born, and they can be created by circumstance. Scott Ritter makes a bullet-proof case for the latter in the case of Iran. History is replete with the former. Hitler was a natural-born sociopath. Martha Stout is the authority here.

It can't happen here? Don't bet on it. But if you are a gambler, then please consider how ever-more scarce resources, driven by population overflow will encourage the known and unknown nuclear marches into the next century... Sooner or later.


We remain optimistic. See: Hope | Locus of Control | Solutions | Tokyo for some reasons why.

See: Summary for how we see a road to peace beckoning.

Further References:

Civilization
Conflict Resolution
Conservatives Without a Conscience
Dialogue
External Locus of Control
Even a Child Can do It
Home-Town Horror
Internal Locus of Control
Monotheism and Violence
Nation Building
Research Summary
Sociopath Next Door
Some Solutions Evident
Tea Leaves - How to Read Politicians