The last couple of times have been quite deep so we’ll make this quick and fun.

Anyway, Europe 1938.

Synopsis

As Herr Hitler prepares to carry out his grand plans for Europe, the government of Neville Chamberlain desperately seeks peace. Relationships, morality, and humanity are all put to the test as two old friends, a British civil servant and a German diplomat, try to bring back the world from the edge of war.

Review

Anyone who knows me knows that I am an absolute World War II nerd, so you can imagine my excitement when I first saw this movie on Netflix. While it is a fictional account based around very real events in history, the film manages to capture all important themes and also touches upon more human elements that are often missed in the grand tales of war. Strap in as ideologies and cultures are juxtaposed and those in the know prepare for the apocalypse that seems unavoidable. The only criticism - Neville Chamberlain’s portrayal paints him in a way better light than he really should be, but maybe that’s just my opinion.

4 wars that started in ways you wouldn’t believe.

I want to quickly dispel any notions that this is a philosophy newsletter. This is an everything newsletter. The goal is to understand where we came from, how we got here, where we are going, and how we will get there. That means philosophy, science, art, culture, and history.

Now, of course, wars almost never start over just one incident. They are the result of years of buildup and multiple factors that slowly boil over. But at times the actual inciting incidents will leave you jaw dropped and other times, just laughing.
Here are 4 examples:

Just ask for directions.

1914. War was coming. Everyone knew it. France wanted its stuff back, Germany wanted everyone’s stuff and the spunky new German navy was making the Brits…uncomfortable. The Austro-Hungarian kingdom contained many ethnic people who weren’t fans of the regime; among them were the Serbs & Bosnians, who wanted independence more than you want Bitcoin to go back to $60,000.
One day, Austro-Hungarian Duke Franz Ferdinand decided to go on a joy ride in the region with his route published in advance (smart). In a turn of events that surprised no one, assassins lay in wait for him and threw bombs at his car. But here’s the twist - they missed and hit some soldiers instead!! Now if you had just narrowly escaped an assassination attempt, I imagine you would choose to go back home or at least stay indoors, right? Well, that’s why you’re not a Duke. Ferdinand instead sat right back in his open-top car and went to visit the injured soldiers. But on the way, his driver took a wrong turn and, by sheer luck, landed up next to one of the assassins…who shot him. And thus began World War I.

Don’t steal a man’s bacon.

Tensions were already high between the Yanks and the Brits over their borders on the American continent. A place especially embroiled in controversy was the fertile island of San Juan between the mainland and Vancouver. The Brits sent a man named Charles Griffith to settle the island with a sheep farm, and along with those wooly sheep were some juicy juicy Berkshire pigs. Over time, American settlers reached there too, and among them was one Lyman Cutler, a man lazier than you on a Sunday afternoon. Instead of clearing forests for his potato farm, he simply started it smack dab in the middle of sheep territory and chose to only fence three sides. Imagine you’re a fat pig and all that lies between you and ripe, delicious potatoes is a flimsy three-sided fence…yum right? That’s what happened. Griffith’s pigs would routinely come to feed on Cutler’s crops and Cutler would have to routinely chase them away.
Until one day, Cutler had had enough. And like any reasonable gun owner, he put it to use…and shot the pig. Griffith was appalled. The man in charge of the British settlement was Governor James Douglas. When Griffith complained to Douglas, he sent his men to Cutler who demanded he pay Griffith $100 for the pig (crazy at the time) or they would arrest him. British officers arresting an American official on American soil?!! Oof. As news of this appalling action spread, it attracted two great American idiots: General William Harney and George Pickett. History is unclear as to why, but Harney believed this is the perfect chance to start a war and so he sent Pickett and his troops to the island. When the British saw American soldiers on their island, they too sent their navy. Although matters were resolved without a shot being fired, for a moment everyone held their breath as one great and one upcoming power reached the edge of war.

PS. I have been very brief about and unfair to this one in the interest of time. Check out this video for the full story:

Frat Boys are the worst.

Between the Roman Republic and the empire of Carthage lay a small little island you’ve probably heard of called Sicily, and in Sicily lay the empire of Syracuse. The tyrant there had contracted a group of Italian mercenaries called the Mammertines to do some of his dirty work but when he died, the next one simply said, “You can go home now”. But they didn’t wanna. So the lads landed up in the town of Messana……..and slaughtered all the men and took over the city. Then the Mammertines started raiding all around Syracuse but when they fought back, the Mamms sent to Carthage for help. Carthage, which was already an enemy of Syracuse, rushed to help. But some within the Mammertines weren’t too happy with the Carthaginians, so they wrote to Rome. And although the Romans were skeptical of risking war with this superpower, they did what Romans do best: say yes to fighting.
And thus, with the battle of Messana, the first Punic War was afoot. What would follow is more than a century of conflict spread over three great wars which would determine the direction of civilization as we know it, but more on that another time.

PS. I have been very brief about and unfair to this one as well. Check out this video for the full story:

You can take my life, but not my dessert.

In 1828 during a coup in Mexico City, rioters destroyed the bakery of one French Pastry chef named Remontel. After his many complaints went unanswered by the Mexicans, ol’ Remo decided to petition his homeland. But no answer. At least not for 10 years when the complaint finally reached the ears of a man known as King Louis-Phillipe. Already furious that the Mexicans had defaulted on their loans, the King demanded that the Mexicans pay Remontel 600,000 pesos in compensation to which the Mexicans replied “Pfft”. And so, in October 1838, a French fleet arrived on the shores of Mexico, and what followed was a year-long fiasco of skirmishes that ended in 250 deaths and Mexico paying Remontel, you guessed it, 600,000 pesos. The Pastry War.

So you see, while WWII may have had a grand build up and an actual invasion to start it off…there have been times when people were simply looking for reasons to go to war.

In conclusion, I just want to say: watch Munich: The Edge of War. It’s a good movie.

Until next time!