NationStates Jolt Archive

We've already discussed when and how but we haven't discussed the duration of the conflict.

If a third world war broke out how long would it last and what would post-war life be like?

Discuss!

And here I was hoping for a WWIV thread

And here I was hoping for a WWIV thread

Our friend Alby summarized WWIV superbly.

I do not know what kind of weapons WWIII will be fought with but I know for certain that WWIV will be fought with sticks and stones

Well, let's see how long the first two world wars lasted.

World War 1 -28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918 (cease-fire).
World War 2 - September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945.
Generally accepted dates, not chronologically perfect.

That would be a mean of five years and some odd months.

Following the "total war" guideline, one could realistically assume that WWIII level force strength and supply rates could last no longer than eight years, regardless of economical state.

Life after: Not sure.

It won't last long because once one nuke is lobbed, they'll all be lobbed and we'll all be dead.

Next question?

How do we even get a WWIII? I mean seriously, US, China, Russia, EU cannot attack each other. So again, how do we get WWIII?

Read this -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Canticle_for_Leibowitz

If it goes nuclear, it won't last long.

If it doesn't go nuclear, it won't last long either, since the winning side will quickly render the loser unable to project force. If the loser has to be occupied, it'll take quite a bit longer, but if a cease-fire agreement can be reached, I wouldn't expect any such war to last longer than 6 to 8 months.

It would depend on if it goes nuclear, if it does, WW3 will last about 2 hours. if it doesn't go nuclear, a couple of years.

If it goes nuclear, it won't last long.

If it doesn't go nuclear, it won't last long either, since the winning side will quickly render the loser unable to project force. If the loser has to be occupied, it'll take quite a bit longer, but if a cease-fire agreement can be reached, I wouldn't expect any such war to last longer than 6 to 8 months.

It would depend on if it goes nuclear, if it does, WW3 will last about 2 hours. if it doesn't go nuclear, a couple of years.

Oh it'll be nuclear, because I believe that WW III would start in the Middle East.

We've already discussed when and how but we haven't discussed the duration of the conflict.

If a third world war broke out how long would it last and what would post-war life be like?

Discuss!

It will be over by Christmas, then when we've won we'll build a land fit for heroes!

Same link as in another thread - if you speak German, watch (http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=5019344230626951787).

Same link as in another thread - if you speak German, watch (http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=5019344230626951787).

What if you can only speak some German?

EDIT: Just started watching it, understood some of it, then noticed that it goes for nearly 87 minutes. Maybe later.

What if you can only speak some German?
Then you can try, but you may end up having trouble following. It's a fictional documentary from Germany (1998), outlining the events of WWIII. It's very well done, by the same people who do all those WWII documentaries you see on SBS all the time.

Cheers Leon see the edit.

But seems to look good already and I will be coming back to this thread and watching that one day.

I figure the Resource Wars will last some 10-15 years before either slowly petering out or inspiring someone to try a planetary takeover bid. If you live in a western state, life probably won't change much - a little less variety in terms of food, maybe more expensive living conditions. If you're in a developing "winner", expect to prosper as the resources you stole propel you to a higher standard. If you're in a developing "loser', the living will envy the dead.

It really does depend on the scenario, but I'd lean away from the estimates of an extremely short war (ie a nuclear exchange). See, there'd have to be a buildup to the point that nukes would get used.

World War III could start in the Middle East, but it would have to incorporate major powers besides the US, or spread beyond the Middle East, to be considered World War III. An Israel-Iran war that ends with Tel Aviv, Haifa, and half of Iran turned to parking lot could be quick, but it wouldn't be a world war.

In my opinion, for it to be considered World War III, at least two of the following factions would have to be at war:

The United States
The European Union
The United Kingdom (Britain has the global reach to wage World War III without US assistance)
Russia
China
India/Pakistan (an India-Pakistan war would not be considered World War III unless someone else on this list gets involved)
A hypothetical Middle Eastern coalition

My money is on the war lasting months (if a ceasefire is reached) to years.

The thing is, none of the nations that have ICBMs are likely to launch a first strike (I'm deliberately excluding ultra-paranoid Israel, probably-crazy North Korea, and hate-each-other's-guts India and Pakistan from this). They all know that to launch such a strike practically guarantees Armageddon.

Our friend Alby summarized WWIV superbly.

Albert Einstein apparently didn't take into account the possibility of an extensive network of hardened underground, possibly secret, shelters housing military personnel, armaments, supplies, manufacturing infrastructure and knowledge bases necessary to restart civilization at the small scale. To be fair, the idea of such well protected bunkers were probably beyond his time.

As long as we close the underground bunker gap we will be alright.

I know I have paraphrased it but it has been awhile since I have seen that excellent movie.

Same link as in another thread - if you speak German, watch (http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=5019344230626951787).
Saw it before - quite interesting, but a bit 1980s.

Saw it before - quite interesting, but a bit 1980s.

Well duh. It was set in the 1980s

Well duh. It was set in the 1980s
I mean in terms of its filming style etc.

I don't know how the war itself would fare, but when it comes to aftermath: I'd call myself Lord Humungus and set up a biker gang. :D