Q&A Friday #96: Could We See WW3?

24 Oct, 2008 by John Hawkins

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Question: “How close are we really to WWIII with Russia on the move, Israel and Iran almost certain to come to blows, a very unstable nuclear Pakistan, and a United States that will have a very difficult time putting boots on the ground in additional combat theaters for the next 2-3 years?” — Mike_M

Answer: I don’t know about WW3, but what you are seeing is a result of the United States being in less of a position to “police the world.”

Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, I expect to see more of it — and not just over the next 2-3 years. Conservatives are becoming more isolationist as a result of our allies’ refusal to give us significant help in Iraq and Afghanistan, liberals (here and in Europe) have become even more pacifistic, and with money getting tighter, we’re not going to have as much cash to spend on foreign adventures as we have in the past.

What that means, in all honesty, is that our foreign allies cannot count on us to guarantee their safety. Much of the world hasn’t realize that yet, but when they do, expect a lot more invasions, more nations building nuclear weapons, and spreading chaos and violence around the world that will have a larger impact than it has in the past because global markets are so tightly tied together.