Peace is having the bigger stick

[Rich86]

Ok so I started watching Iron Man last night (not finished it so don't spoil it!).... there is a scene where Tony Stark near the start of the film tells a reporter;

"Peace is having the bigger stick"

Is this true? Is the only way to have peace to be armed to the teeth and be so much stronger than everyone else that your position is unassailable?

Or, in contrast does this arming up scare other nations and cause them to likewise, arm themselves to the teeth? We need only look at the arms race during the Cold War to see how a nation arming itself for defensive purposes can come across as 'aggressive' and frighten other nations into likewise building up it's arms.

Is it possible to live in a world where no nation needs to be armed to the teeth? Or is this just a childish fantasy?

Discuss :hmmm:

[Admiral Piett]

This is probably quite similar to the quote "Whoever wishes peace, let him prepare for war."

I personally disagree. I'm sure that it will be a deterrent from more militant nations, but at the same time, you only widen the possibility of conflict. Peace is attained by diplomacy. You cannot control when bad things happen, it doesn't matter if you are a strong nation or a weak nation. It's all about how you react and deal with those situations.

[Viking Prince]

Being the strongest does not insure peace -- for example, the Japanese attack on the USA to begin USA entry into WWII. NATO's strength is in cooperation and not just the shear military strength of the USA. The strength of the group would also temper aggressive tendancies of the individual members and perhaps reduce miscalculation.

The Teddy Rooseveldt idea of speaking softly and carrying a big stick is probably a better way to look at it. The threat of violence needs to be credible, but you will need quiet diplomacy to keep the peace also.

[Holger Danske]

Diplomacy is full of glitches... Haven't you learned from Rome:TW

[Bleda]

Yeah, I think Teddy was onto something with his diplomacy. But the Big Stick is a very important part of the maintenance of peace. Anyone recall the Pax Romana, or what modern political theorists are calling the Pax Americana immediately following WWII? big stick diplomacy = bad. big stick, while using soft diplomacy = good