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tristanjtoday at 12:37 AM2 repliesview on HN

I have thought about this a lot, and concluded that the peace we have today largely stems from all major powers having nuclear weapons, and leadership in each understanding that avoiding nuclear war is the utmost priority. All foreign policy choices are aligned to prevent military confrontation and avoid nuclear war. Thus there is an overemphasis to resolve disputes through diplomacy. But the plebeians do not understand this, they assume the peace today backed by nuclear weapons is genuine and permanent, they don't consider the nuclear weapons hidden underground, and advocate for policies like pacifism that do not reflect reality.

This quote sums up the current situation:

Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.


Replies

qnleightoday at 6:23 AM

Economic interdependence is also a big factor. If you depend on someone selling you things or buying them from you, you have a lot more to lose by invading them.

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florentoday at 3:22 AM

Shocking how a quote from some 2016 novel now rolls around the Internet like it's fucking Aristotle

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