cinders of conflict

An accidental shooting death during a boar hunt in Moldova has sent politics there into a tailspin that may threaten the small country's entry into the European Union. Worse may be yet to come.

An American held for six months in North Korea as a spy will face a judicial decision shortly on whether, among other things, he acted in an effort to overthrow the regime. The potential penalty is death. The decision will come at a time of heightened tension between North Korea and whatever enemies it finds politically expedient to dredge up on any given day. Sabre-rattling has yet to lead to drawn sabres, but you never know.

On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were shot dead in Sarajevo. The event is widely credited as being responsible for the outbreak of World War I a month later.

One man...

One event ...

One war.