As Europe prepares to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the YouGov polling also showed large majorities felt that events during and before the second world war were relevant today and must continue to be taught to younger generations.
Between 41% and 55% of respondents in the five European countries polled: Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, said they thought another world war was very or fairly likely within the next five to 10 years, a view shared by 45% of Americans.
Majorities of 68% to 76% said they expected any new conflict would involve nuclear weapons, and between 57% and 73% also said a third world war would lead to greater loss of life than in 1939-1945. Many (25% to 44%) believed it would kill most people in the world.
You know, surveys show 100% of people polled about the future don’t have a fucking clue what the future holds.
BUT! Over half of respondents predicted the scary future, here’s a picture of a nuclear mushroom cloud
They might not know what the future holds, but when you see very rich, very powerful people saying they sure would love to start WW3, it doesn’t take a genius to think it’s probably going to happen.
that may be true, but for every hyperbolic asshole who says shit like that on the internet or tv, there are 500 quiet, reasonably sane multi-millionaires who know that global thermonuclear war is pretty fucking bad for business who just want to play golf and cheat on their wives who act as a countervailing force
World War III started in 2022. Some argue it started as early as 2014 or 2008.
but there can be no question that it started in 2022 at the latest. Society has basically married the term WW3 to the idea of a nuclear holocaust, and because there arent nuclear weapons being used yet, many will deny its happening.
yet massive armies are on the move, the sides were drawn, and some of the armies have already started fighting. There’s over a million dead in Russia and Ukraine, thats officially a major conflict, and it shows no signs of stopping. If we could compare this to WW2, We’re no longer in the Spanish Civil War or Italian Africa phase, we’re in the Sino-Japanese phase. (China and Japan were at war in 1936. and that conflict was merged into what became known as WW2)
Not at all.
What we’ll get is not one big World War of Axis vs. Allies, but everyone at war with some kind of small regional pissing contest or insurgency.
Sure, most of the world will be in some form of conflict, but it won’t be a “World War” in the same sense of a 20-on-20 prolonged conflict with well-defined nation-states on each side. Not that this opinion survey can really capture that.
That’s a lot of what the first two world wars were, under the sheet. Germany and Japan had few aligned interests, but they agreed to help one another to each pursue their own local imperial ambitions.
I actually think I’m agreeing with you. I’m just saying that large wars have always been an excuse for regional pissing contests.
It scares me. Think about Putin and Ukraine. The conflict in Gaza helps Putin, because it distracts the world from what he’s doing. Imagine if there were 5 or 6 Ukraine sized conflicts in the developed world. He’d have a much easier time and there would be less available aid for Ukraine.
How many Putin-style assholes need to figure this out and launch their little wars before the world is overwhelmed and descends into a chaos where all bets are off?
Not many. The thing about globalization and repealing the 20th century is that its a wobbly 3D Rube Goldberg domino landscape. 1-2 dickheads per continent is all it takes.
I tend to agree. So far there hasn’t been enough taking sides for a proper world war to take place. But my fear is that with authoritarians in place in all the major world powers that we will just have the large powers conquering the small for the next few years.
You’re correct, however, keep in mind that authoritarians have fragile egos and are often focused locally, often on how to further subjugate their populations and garner favor. That usually means conflicts like insurgency or cross-border attacks like Russia into Ukraine (x2), Russia into Georgia, US into Mexico/Canada, India and Pakistan fighting over Cashmere, PRC and Taiwan, Serbia and Kosovo, Kenya/Somalia/Somalil and, Uganda and eastern DRC, etc. etc.
Boomer pissing contest fantasies of China and the US duking it out in the Pacific are foolish as neither wants to risk direct conflict with no tangible gains expected. It’s a guarantee of either outright loss or maaaaybe a Pyrrhic victory of you already control your media. No landing party flotilla will land in Los Angeles or Hong Kong. The US only stands to lose.
Can I just point out how cute Americans screaming “Ukraine isnt our war” is expecting the rest of NATO to join their side against China.
China isnt our war, yeah they’re not good, but the only reason America and China are at odds, is because they’re both competing for who gets to be the hegemon and slave driver of the world, respectfully, yall can murder each other into extinction on your own dime, the rest of us would rather do something else with our energy.
Oligarchs can’t make money if everyone is dead. This will not happen.
