Many in US and western Europe think ‘third world war likely within five to 10 years’
Many in US and western Europe think ‘third world war likely within five to 10 years’
Exclusive: Poll before 80th anniversary of VE Day finds tensions with Russia seen as most probable cause
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.
If things keep going on the current path, eventually it's likely to happen, even if I really don't like that idea and want to be wrong. The best hope at the moment is in the US dealing with its situation internally and regaining at least some sense of normalcy before it gets to a point of true non-return and external retaliaton. With some indirect push by other nations like tariff retaliation and cutting strategic benefits to the US, just enough for the people to wake up and fight the oligarchs, but not so much shock that it triggers an actual war.
And I'm not joking. Trump literally said he rules America, as well as the world. He has stated that he won't stand for Canada and Europe partnering up to compensate for the lack of the US partnership, and he's won't let go of his wet dreams of annexation for several territories. He wants to be remembered as a "great man" in the history books, and not just another footnote billionaire. That kind of ambition is dangerous. Hitler-level dangerous.
For someone like him any excuse is valid. And just like he didn't take his 2020 election loss lying down, calling it rigged and urging an insurrection, he sure as hell won't leave the White House without sweat and blood being spilled, now that he's got his hooves on it again. We are dealing with savages who think themselves superior, and won't stop willingly.
I am certain that Trump admires Hitler for being THE human name synonymous with evil.
Compare him to, say, Reinhard Heydrich. He is a man that all of us should know, though I imagine that some may need to look him up. No one needs to look up Hitler. And Trump wants to be sure that no one needs to look him up for the next thousand years.
I don't see much war happening between Asian neighbours nor Latin American ones, but I can easily see America violently balkanizing (always a matter of time but Trump is the great accelerationist, lol) and Eastern Europe being a hot zone too.
Oligarchs can't make money if everyone is dead. This will not happen.
Oligarchs will have already stripped the coffers bare by then. Proof of that is just how much of the world's wealth has been concentrated in the top 0.1%.