I wrote this on vacation in June:

Military & weapons will be needed to defend peaceful countries as long as despotic dictators exist in the world. Violence is a primitive instinct, and one that must be tamed and avoided, but not at the cost of peace.

Some people like to envision an army of skilled diplomats and mediators lining our borders, but the world is not there yet. As long as there are inequities of power, wealth, and resources, countries will use the spectrum of communication/influence available to them: violence on one end, mutual respect/cooperation on the other.

And a note to the President: Countries are not franchises; they’re startups.