Oil; Part One of Many

Deciding to go to war is the most significant decision a nation can make. The rise of total war has given conflict the potential to encompass all aspects of a nation. Likewise, the dramatic increases in globalization in the past few decades have made economic interconnectedness a facet of everyday life for developed nations. The complexity of the modern world demands that nations develop long-term strategies for maximizing political and economic wellbeing. 

When contemplating the use of military force, the weight of innumerable factors all come to bear.  No political schema is free of the subtleties politics of state. No matter if you are Kim Jong-Il or Vladimir Putin, Barack Obama or Felipe Calderon, war is no simple decision of yes or no.

Why did Japan choose to go to war in the Pacific, and finally against the United States in 1941?  The answer is elusive, and every explanation seems to either leave out important facts, or skew them to suit a particular political theory.

Uniquivocally, however, at the very core of Japan's decision, was it's lack of abundant natural resources.  Above all of its material needs sat one specter: Oil. 

Victory [in war] is the beautiful, bright-coloured flower. Transport is the stem without which it could never have blossomed. (1899)

— Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill

In The River War (2004), 87.