Would this solve anything ?
Same everything between opposing ideologies. Army, Navy, Air Forces. Size, training, tactics & logistics.
Same tanks, planes, ships & resources.

What would become of Military "Parity".

Mexican Stand-off ?
Total annihilation ?
A "Forever War" (sorry Joe Haldeman) ?
Isolationism ?
A permanent "state" of fear, (knife's edge) ?
Utopia ?
Science, Space, Arms race ?
Peace and a normal life ?
Fight each other with lawyers ?
Go crazy ?
Dirty deals & ganging up ?

This is what the small ones try for, and the larger ones try to prevent.
What if parity came to pass ?
Is the world, are we, better off without it ?

Does the world need a Parent, Teacher, Boss, Policeman ?

Dogs and children do.

"If" Parity is a pipe-dream, why have we tried for it so hard and so long ?

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"Danger Will Robinson!"

What forces in history did you have in mind when you had your brain storm on parity ? World War One came to mind when I first read the post but perhaps there are more.

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Work Harder ! Millions on welfare are depending on you.

Mostly was thinking M-A-D and nuclear whatever(s) (orbiting platforms, missiles, torpedo's, suitcases, bombs, shells, along with the rest (chemical/biological)) of WMD's.

More like a "dust-devil" than a storm.

Any time frame, past-present-future.

Would we still butt heads without a clear advantage in either time (when ready), weapons, manpower, resources, etc.?

Cops (policemen) are called "bullies" because they have more power, but we forget (more often than not) they don't start things.

Your basic classroom "bully" will pick on the weak, but will think twice about a fight he has a 50/50 chance of loosing. Either ignore you or try to recruit you (to his cause), attempt a friendship, gang up or find a different angle of attack.
Parity appears to work in this scenario, if only temporally.

What about the "Big Picture", .... the rest of the school?

I guess it's a question about power. Taking power away is not an option in/of human nature. If you are powerless, you get stepped on, no matter how glorious the intentions of the stepper intentionally/originally were.
Power corrupts & absolute....yada yada.

There is also the power of the press/media, for good and all that (non-disputable), but also the power of a corrupt press in selective/exclusive/bias reporting, and without a BS detector.....can be very persuasive, or equally destructive. (the weapon of the little guy)

Orson Wells (War of the Worlds broadcast)

No matter the weapon used, if someone thinks they can get away with something (theft etc.), you wimp out and don't object, or thinks before it starts they have you beat (fight), because of more/better this or that....they probably will.

Does "Mother" need to be there to break it up, or do we let the playground fight till the last kid standing? Leader of the pack thing, they will eventually fight, and what reason they use for the fight is most times irreconcilable and irrelevant.

Will it end, or will there always be a reason to do it, no matter how Lame?

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"Danger Will Robinson!"

Heavy stuff.
It's also a question about how you perceive human nature, some might say this would lead to perfect peace as they see human beings as basically cooperative, whereas others might think it would only increase the competitive/jealous urge.
Initial thoughts are on alliances, whether the parity can be broken, but I suppose if it's pure theoretical philosophy then every alliance will simply be balanced by another contrary one springing up.
I imagine that if Military parity (or the ability to do physical harm) was the situation then, M.A.D. or not, 'The market rules' and differences and power might be based purely on material wealth and it's effects; but if you then start bringing equality to all other extensions of power then 'the centre cannot hold' with no advantage to build on and we devolve into a pure form of anarchy where we all live alone in caves with a shotgun constantly to hand?

Or;

The Shotgun becomes meaningless as we all become one big happy family?

Blah.



Cheers,
Adam.

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"Wars cannot be fought with dream stuff" - Sir Percy Hobart.

Exactly my next thoughts.
Peace or devolve into "Tribal" units.
(spread the word)

ditto

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"Danger Will Robinson!"

Mutually Assured Destruction - MAD......never been a better acronym

someone has to gain the upper hand eventually...imagine complete parity in WW1 (well it was pretty close in a 4 year stalemate) and 2, we'd probably still be fighting