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Back to To the Point

To the Point

Are Current Conflicts a Prelude to World War III?

From Eastern Europe to the Middle East, from Africa to the East China Sea, the world is battered by violence and threatened by instability.  Can the US, the lone “superpower,” impose order on chaos?  What are the prospects for World War III?

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By Warren Olney • Aug 5, 2014 • 52m Listen

Since the end of the Cold War, when the US emerged as the only “superpower,” another World War has seemed almost unthinkable. But recently, the “superpower” has been unable to contain widespread violence fueled by local conflicts, religion and nationalist ambitions. One hundred years ago, international complacency was shattered by World War I. Could that happen again? If chaos is the “new norm,” does it contain the seeds of another global upheaval? Also, an American major general was killed today in Afghanistan. He’s the highest-ranking American officer to die in hostilities since the Vietnam War. And, the ban on drinking from the public water supply has been lifted in Toledo, Ohio… but that’s not the end of the story.

Image: Ongoing conflicts around the world: the locations where the conflicts are taking place are colored. By: Futuretrillionaire

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    Warren Olney

    former KCRW broadcaster

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    Evan George

    Director of Content, News

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    Benjamin Gottlieb

    Reporter, Fill-in Host

  • KCRW placeholder

    Sarah Sweeney

    Vice President of Talk Programming, KCRW

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