This seemingly inocuous-sounding phrase can actually mask some devastating results. Collateral damage occurs when a military strike hits more than just its intended target.
I'm currently reading "A Game of Thrones." This is the novel that serves as the basis for the TV show on HBO. It is set in a medeival world of princes and kings. Much of the world centers on honor and duty and loyalty. The knights swear oaths of fealty to their lords and go to battle on their behalf.
This book in particular launches a set of bloody major battles. In each conflict, there are realistic descriptions of the battles and the consequences of those battles. In the words of one of the main characters:
"....why is it aways the innocents who suffer most, when you high lords play your game of thrones?".
There were stories in yesterday's paper about some of the unintended consequences of recent decisions. One story discussed the challenge in keeping some bright minds in scientific research which is highly dependent on increasingly uncertain government financing. Another talked about data coming from weather stations and geographic sattelites that would not be processed. Still another explained how one family would try to weather the storm without a paycheck until the crisis is solved.
I remember the last time that a government shutdown occurred. I was on the island of Maui and unable to visit Haleakala (house of the sun) because the national park was shut down. Fortunately for me, I knew that someday I would be back to take my family on the trip. I am not sure how I would have felt if that had been my only opportunity.
When I was a boy, there was a movie called Wargames. It was about a nerdy programmer who ends up helping save the world from a hyper-intelligent computer that takes over the US arsenal of nuclear weapons. The computer thinks it can win a nuclear war against the Soviets. The programmer has the computer play out thousands of scenarios that all end in complete worldwide devastation. The computer rightly concludes that "the only way to win is not to play".
For the Game of Thrones, that seems true. Even the winners end up suffering greatly.
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