• Urist@lemmy.ml
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    9 months ago

    No, but a conflict pretty much has to include major powers to escalate to a world war and the major powers coincide with the nuclear powers either directly or peripherally. I get the sense that you are arguing in bad faith here.

    • underisk@lemmy.ml
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      9 months ago

      It can involve the nuclear powers without them being in direct, overt conflict with each other. I’m not arguing in bad faith; I genuinely believe that your definition of “World War” is remarkably narrow and I feel I’ve been pretty consistent about trying to lay out my reasoning for that.

      • Urist@lemmy.ml
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        9 months ago

        Proxy wars historically have never constituted world wars by any account.

          • Urist@lemmy.ml
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            9 months ago

            Yes, that is vacuously true. If it stops being so, recorded history will end.

            • underisk@lemmy.ml
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              9 months ago

              If all the nuclear powers aligned against all the non-nuclear states and waged a war of extermination against them, that would, by your terms, not qualify as a “World War”.