1914–2014

The newly born 2014 will have to note one of the most gloomy anniversaries throughout Western history. Indeed, unlike what Putin thinks, the main event of the twentieth century is not the collapse of the USSR, but that made it possible, the USSR, the birth of the First World War, the century of which we have to remember the whole New Year.

The Great, as it is still often called, the war was an almost successful attempt to suicide the West. Having reached an unprecedented heyday, civilization, left without rivals, grabbed with herself. In essence, it was a civilian - fraternal - war, for each side fought for the same European values. Not ideology, but a political map shared opponents. They united their industrial power, which escaped from the obedience of man, the progress of science and technology, the sovereign will, the stubbornness of the generals and the great misunderstanding that led to the disaster. The Gavrila’s shot of the principle unleashed the war, but a disproportionate reaction to this act of terrorism (after September 11 and the war in Iraq, this sounds especially relevant).

However, historians have been arguing for a whole century about the reasons for this monstrous and meaningless war, but no one has doubts its consequences. Without the First World War, there would be no second. Without her, there would be neither Hitler, nor Lenin, nor Stalin. Do not be this inhuman, not distinguishing heroes from the panties of the massacre, we would not know the totalitarian society, who abolished the personality and deified the state. It was this war that gave rise to the worst nightmares of the twentieth century, which tormented us until we outlined them, almost destroying ourselves and the planet in the process. Were the war ...

And, indeed, what would happen to Europe if the First World War could be avoided? I will decide to say about the same as now. Other would be the names and outlines of those states that make up the European Union. But the fate and values of finally committing the fratricidal strife of the continent would have been common. The boundaries, as it happened today, would not interfere with the movement of people, ideas and goods. Marriages would be mixed, currency - one, languages - different, but many would live by bilinguals and polyglots.

And most importantly, it would never have occurred to anyone, as today, to wait for the war between “eternal enemies” or, as they said in 1914, between “Gauls” and “Huns”. At first glance, this seems to be a utopia, on the second - the reality of the 21st century, which subtracted the 20th century to find himself in his happy pre -war source. To see the world as he finally began, we must stop whining.

Without the First World War, there would be no second. There would be no Hitler, nor Lenin, nor Stalin without her

Of course, grandiose difficulties have not gone anywhere - economic, national, emigrant. Of course, the contradictions are still torn to Europe-between the rich north and the poor south, between the old West and the New East, meanwhile to yearn for the past, and those who are afraid of his return. But a hundred years ago, people also did not like the time in which they lived. They also considered an unbearable era that we call the “beautiful” from the fullness of feelings. Contemporaries found her monotonous, wingless and could not wait for it to end.

Only having survived the twentieth century, we learned to envy yesterday’s Europe, which, if you look closely (especially from the Maidan), is strikingly similar to the one that it was before the damned war. Let this thought warm us in the coming today - no matter how difficult it turns out to be.

Alexander Genis is a New York writer and publicist, author and host of the American Hour program on top of the barriers

Opinions expressed under the heading "Law" may not reflect the point of view of the Radio Liberty editorial