It's not news that many places in the world are torn apart by war -- nevertheless, recent headlines have been dominated by stories about conflict. In addition to the threat posed by North Korea's recent missile tests (and Japan's aggressive response), there is ever-increasing death and destruction in Iraq, marked not only by continuing casualties for American troops but also by deepening divisions between Shiites and Sunnis and emerging signs of "ethnic cleansing" in many neighborhoods. One can also point to ongoing civil wars of frightening intensity in a number of places around the globe.
