…troops withdrawn in an apparent acknowledgement of defeat. The government has not indicated how long the withdrawal will last but most estimates suggest the process could take in excess of 12 months. Defeat in that region of the world signals a re-drawing of the geo-political map. The ramifications are wide reaching and cross many different state interests including national security, energy policy and perhaps most frighteningly nuclear proliferation. The specter of a rogue nation or small terrorist organization laying hands on a nuclear device has been looming for some time now; this defeat only makes the possibility all the more inevitable.
Conflicting reports from the ground tell two very different stories: one of arson in a multitude of locations; fires can be seen burning out of control in places that were only yesterday occupied by tanks and armored units. Now with the military making its way out of the region, the violence has escalated to a level that hasn’t been seen in generations. The other story paradoxically recounts giant street festival-like gatherings that can only be described as parties. Music, food and drink, laughter, dancing have all been witnessed even as fires burn in the background and the threat of nuclear destruction looms.
In related news, the world oil market saw prices skyrocket as oil fields were set ablaze across the region. Supply is expected to dramatically fall off in the coming weeks and months unless the violence can be curtailed. Unconfirmed reports from the capital indicate that the government is prepared to take unprecedented steps to ensure that the flow of oil does not stop, including dipping into the oil reserves generally intended for military use in a time of war.
Governments are convening to discuss a global plan to quell the violence before it spins out of control.
lyrics
Things Will Never Be The Same
Now there once was a time
Remembered deep in my mind
A happily every after
But now I see all the signs
And watch the future unwind
This is the end of the laughter
I tried to warn you
But you didn't want to listen
And now our paths
They have to change
From here on out
Things will never be the same
Never be the same
And now I want to rewind
And just pretend that I'm blind
So I could get what I needed
But now I can't seem to find
Another way to define
The way that we were defeated
I tried to show you
But you didn't want to see it
And now our paths
They've got to change
From here on out
Things will never be the same
(Everything has changed)
Never be the same
We're used to
Everything
Bigger, faster, better, more
Now nothing
Compares to
What we had before
I never wanted to see
That the problem was me
I never wanted an ending
But I refuse to concede
I need the air that I breathe
On this, my life is depending
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