Again The Past

Take a devastated nation, still smarting from global defeat and loss of an empire, a collapsed economy and embarrassment on the world stage.  Add a charismatic leader who so believes in his country's eminence that he rallies his people to a renewed sense of national pride.  As his country turns itself around economically and emotionally, cloaked in a swelling national pride, the rest of the world believes that the world has grown up to the extent that there will be no more full scale wars to be fought, and so reduce their military to nearly nonexistent levels.  Meanwhile, fueled by national pride and hegemony, he begins to retake the lands that had been forfeited under force of arms a decade or so previously.  Mix in a global economic recession -  make that a global depression, where the stock markets soar on ill-advised infusion of fiat currencies, pumping up companies that have no real value.  As some nations build up their military presence in or near regions they believe rightfully "belong" to them, other nations appropriate their defense budget to other, more pressing areas. Diplomats scurry to and fro, ecstatic in the lies they've been told, espousing how sage and wonderful these great leaders truly are.

Think I'm talking about the world's situation report as of today?  Think I'm talking about the US and Russia being at odds again?  Think I'm describing Putin's ambitions to acquire a warm water port?  Yes, I am.  But the scenario I describe above is Germany in the world of 1929.  Chamberlain misread Hitler's motivation, and global chaos ensued.  I fear the Kenyan and his hapless minion John Kerry are reenacting that classic blunder of the twentieth century that ultimately cost the lives of hundreds of millions and resulted in another world war.

Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it:  here we go again!