April 5—There are times when history stretches out like a long road, as far as the eye can see. But there are other times when long historical processes shift almost overnight, for good, or for ill. We find ourselves in the latter type today, where the world is gripped between an unfathomable horror of global war, and the birth of a new era which has the potential to move beyond the traps which cause wars. In times like this, old routines and habits become far worse than useless—they become deadly.
