If you have ever heard of Vox, you probably know it as a far left website that publishes "think pieces". Supposedly, some of the brightest minds on the left write for the site. That's why I think it's worthwhile to take a look at a piece today on Vox about how World War III is now possible.
Here's the paragraph that sets the tone for the whole piece by Max Fisher.
Europe today looks disturbingly similar to the Europe of just over 100 years ago, on the eve of World War I. It is a tangle of military commitments and defense pledges, some of them unclear and thus easier to trigger. Its leaders have given vague signals for what would and would not lead to war. Its political tensions have become military buildups. Its nations are teetering on an unstable balance of power, barely held together by a Cold War–era alliance that no longer quite applies.
That sounds pretty bad, doesn't it. The problem, of course, is that it is just wrong. It's not wrong as a matter of opinion; the basic facts are incorrect.
Let's start with the supposed "tangle of military commitments." Okay, there's NATO. That's the same NATO that has been around since just after the Second World War, except today's NATO is both weaker and less active than the alliance was during the Cold War. That's it. There are no other military alliances or defense pledges. Oh, the Russians would defend the "separatists" in Ukraine, but they are actually just Russians in disguise. That's all there is. Indeed, almost every nation in Europe is either in NATO or is neutral. There are no large scale military commitments other than NATO.
But what about the vague signals for what would and what would not lead to war that Fisher discusses? Is he kidding? The three largest European military powers other than Russia are the UK, France and Germany. None of them has a leader that has said anything at all about what would cause a war, vague or otherwise. Certainly, president Obama has said nothing about war or what would cause one. So at most Fisher is talking about comments that Putin made in Moscow.
But there's "political tensions that have become military buildups", right? Really? Where? There is not a single nation in Europe aside from Ukraine which is trying to defend itself from Russian invasion and Russia itself that have seen any meaningful military buildup. Indeed, European military structures are relatively weaker today than they have even been in modern times.
Okay, but isn't there an "unstable balance of power" in Europe? Nope. There's NATO which encompasses nearly every nation in Europe. There's Russia against whom the Europeans are really not trying for power equality. The reality today is that most of Europe is in a post-military era in which the idea of some 19th century balance of power makes no sense.
The actual reality of the Vox article is that it shows just how bankrupt the deep thinkers on the left have become. Instead of analyzing actual facts, they pretend to know something that they clearly don't. It's not just that Fisher writes a piece that is laughable in its pretense of knowledge. It's also that the editors at Vox prominently publish an article which is just so completely wrong.
Why would anyone bother to consider what these fools have to say?
Here's the paragraph that sets the tone for the whole piece by Max Fisher.
Europe today looks disturbingly similar to the Europe of just over 100 years ago, on the eve of World War I. It is a tangle of military commitments and defense pledges, some of them unclear and thus easier to trigger. Its leaders have given vague signals for what would and would not lead to war. Its political tensions have become military buildups. Its nations are teetering on an unstable balance of power, barely held together by a Cold War–era alliance that no longer quite applies.
That sounds pretty bad, doesn't it. The problem, of course, is that it is just wrong. It's not wrong as a matter of opinion; the basic facts are incorrect.
Let's start with the supposed "tangle of military commitments." Okay, there's NATO. That's the same NATO that has been around since just after the Second World War, except today's NATO is both weaker and less active than the alliance was during the Cold War. That's it. There are no other military alliances or defense pledges. Oh, the Russians would defend the "separatists" in Ukraine, but they are actually just Russians in disguise. That's all there is. Indeed, almost every nation in Europe is either in NATO or is neutral. There are no large scale military commitments other than NATO.
But what about the vague signals for what would and what would not lead to war that Fisher discusses? Is he kidding? The three largest European military powers other than Russia are the UK, France and Germany. None of them has a leader that has said anything at all about what would cause a war, vague or otherwise. Certainly, president Obama has said nothing about war or what would cause one. So at most Fisher is talking about comments that Putin made in Moscow.
But there's "political tensions that have become military buildups", right? Really? Where? There is not a single nation in Europe aside from Ukraine which is trying to defend itself from Russian invasion and Russia itself that have seen any meaningful military buildup. Indeed, European military structures are relatively weaker today than they have even been in modern times.
Okay, but isn't there an "unstable balance of power" in Europe? Nope. There's NATO which encompasses nearly every nation in Europe. There's Russia against whom the Europeans are really not trying for power equality. The reality today is that most of Europe is in a post-military era in which the idea of some 19th century balance of power makes no sense.
The actual reality of the Vox article is that it shows just how bankrupt the deep thinkers on the left have become. Instead of analyzing actual facts, they pretend to know something that they clearly don't. It's not just that Fisher writes a piece that is laughable in its pretense of knowledge. It's also that the editors at Vox prominently publish an article which is just so completely wrong.
Why would anyone bother to consider what these fools have to say?
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