A Fragile World
On June 23, 1914 the Royal Navy sailed into Kiel. British and German naval officers visited each other warships and broke bread together. A few days later, Archduke Franz Ferdinand had been assassinated. As British warships sailed off, the mast of the German warships flew the words “Pleasant Journey”. King Georgie V responded with a wireless message:
“Friends Today
Friends in the Future
Friends Forever”
A few months later, they would be exchanging bullets on the Western Front. What if the Austrians had not sought to exploit the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand? What if Serbia accepted the ten demands?
What if Czar Nicholas II had been forceful in rescinding his order for full mobilization? What if Germany had not actuated the Schlieffen Plan? What if Britain signaled to Germany it would enter the war should Germany attack France through Belgium?
What if cooler heads prevailed?
Fifteen million people died in WW1. All because of the ego of a few men.
Think about the series of event that cascaded because of WW1. Lenin was shipped back to Russia by Germany. What followed was mass deaths, gulags and Stalin’s reign of terror. WWII was nothing but a continuation of WWI. The period between the two was a temporary cease fire. The Treaty of Versailles at the close of WW1 decimated Germany. One of Hitler’s early speech was on the Treaty of Versailles. He gave it often. It was popular. Hitler would have died unknown and broke in the slums of Vienna if not for WW1.
Current Events
There are time I wonder if the MSM is evil. Other times, I don’t wonder at all. Trump opened up dialogue with Putin. They held a summit. MSM had a meltdown. Republicans, Democrats and the Intelligence Community attacked Trump. MSM acts as though the Intelligence Community has credibility. Even funnier, they believe they have credibility. What did we learn from the Gulf of Tonkin incident? What about the suppose weapons of mass destruction in Iraq that MSM was so quick to push with no evidence to get the US into a useless war? How about James Clapper lie that the NSA doesn’t spy on US citizens? Why should any one believe anything the Intelligence Community says? Ideas and words matter. The talking heads in MSM should reflect on the events that led to WW1. They need to understand how quickly conflicts can escalate. They are playing a very dangerous game for political purposes. I’m with Rand Paul on this.