The Next War of the World

Interesting read over at the Belmont Club where Wretchard discusses an article in Foreign Affairs by Niall Ferguson, describing what factors he thinks will influence the coming years. It begins with this provocative summary:

The twentieth century was the bloodiest era in history. Despite the comfortable assumption that the twenty-first will be more peaceful, the same ingredients that made the last hundred years so destructive are present today. In particular, a conflict in the Middle East may well spark another global conflagration. The United States could prevent such an outcome -- but it may not be willing to.