Hot -vs.-Cold War.

My generation was fortunate enough to see the end of the Cold War.  Luckily it ended virtually without conflict when it came to it's final coda.  Being a child through most of it, I don't have a clear understanding or feeling for how close we came to certain points like say...the missile crisis in 1962, or the Berlin Airlift or things of that nature.  I only have what history tells me.  In the last week Russia has made a few moves that people are comparing to the outbreak of a new Cold War and I am not so sure an accurate comparison can be made between what existed from 1945-1991 to what's going on now.

Since the Sochi Olympics ended two weeks ago there was basically a revolution in the Ukraine, a former state of the former Soviet Union and their President was overthrown and is now on the run in exile.  The Russian government, led by president Vladimir Putin, sent troops into the Ukraine and the Crimea to stabilize the region, in his words.  This, as one might expect, infuriated the world and propelled the planet's self appointed police force, (The United States of America), ramped up the rhetoric and as of this morning we have imposed sanctions, which never leads us in any sort of right direction.

So why do I disagree with that incident being the beginning of a new Cold War?  Well for one, the climate is different.  When the last CW was on the "enemy" was clear.  It was the Soviet Union because they had the same weapons we did and could just as effectively annihilate the planet as we could.  Depending on who you talked to, possibly better than we could...but let's face it, a person wouldn't be likely to be around to read any scoreboards after the shooting stopped in a nuclear war, right?  In the equation was the fact that being the world's two superpowers there were thinking individuals on both sides who kept things in check.

Nowadays things are different.  With the two superpowers basically on the same side and the main threat to security being fundamental religious sects the real threat is that sector of the world and not the two biggest kids on the block.  It's weird to think this but what was true in the days when the Sunday Night Movie depicted a nuclear war with "The Day After" or "Threads" is basically gone the way of the dodo bird. Indeed, when it came to an attack on either of the super powers it was at the hands of a religious fanatic on 9/11 and that was perpetrated by non-conventional means.

I believe that the conflict will be resolved by peaceable means and not the military solution.  My political beliefs tell me we should be unconcerned by all this and worry about what we have at home.  The problem is that we committed ourselves, as one of the victors in the last world war nearly 70 years ago to be supportive of the free countries on the planet and to NOT let what happened in the years preceding WWII...that being Nazism and such...to happen again.  Thus diplomacy should prevail.  I am not our President's biggest fan but I would accept a diplomatic solution that he comes up with.  So many people won't but I would.

I just don't want my kid to grow up knowing that there is another threat in this world that is just as strong that could, in the span of a half-hour or so, end his life and destroy the planet.  

Not too much to ask, I'd say.