Prestige Victory

Way back in the last millennium, when nation states still enjoyed open combat and confrontation, Great Satan was facing enemies with serious military bona fides on two different fronts.

Deutschland was devouring Europa, contained Great Britain and was up to her panzers in Afrika and Russia - ready to schwerpunkt Mockba and Pyramidland.

The Japanese Great Asian Co Prosperity Sphere (Nipponese for 'Imperium") had already snorted up huge lines of China, owned Korea, sacked Philippines, devastated Great Satan's Pac Fleet ability to make war and was prepping to do Australia.

The Allies and Great Satan herself were in a terrible bind.

Seemed pretty clear to everyone that if Great Satan couldn't stop Axis victories and turn the tide like really soon - She might never be able to.

Great Satan and her allies needed a Prestige Victory.

Tide of war not so much as tilted for Japan it actually somersaulted. Stymied at Guadacanal by Teuffel Hunden - and losing 4 carriers with the most expert naval aviators in history up to that time (in just a few hours) at Midway.

Deutschland got the pincer treatment in Afrika and Russia counterattacked in a desperate do or die play that kicked and bloodied vaunted panzer korps at Stalingrad resulting in nearly a million casualties.

These Prestige Victories gave Allies a stimulous to remain in it to win it - increasing will power, staying power and fire power to grind their enemies to dust.

Prestige Victories are also needed in the crunk and disorderly world of Internat'l Relations from time to time.

Like scary scary NoKo guy. Recovering from a sudden fit of button happiness -- launching missiles, possible nuke tests, suspected seaborne proliferation chicanery, Sunday UN disapproval meetings that climaxed in the gangsta style
snatch of two hotties on a journalistic endeavour that went way wrong -- Dear Leader needed a Prestige Victory to get another invite to happy talk at yet another Juche' enhancing 6 Party talks to relieve isolation, pick up xtra bling and score points at home with a truly captive population.

And 44 needed some FoPo Prestige too. Appearantly fearful of bystander meddling status ('cept for that wicked Little Satan - natch!! And Re Upsetting Commonwealth's 'Near Abroad' - note no cries about neoconic meddling there! ) recent events in Iran have most likely crashed a Great Satan - Mullah hook up faster than a 6 hour xanex Jägermeister engagement.

China and India both swore off strangling their economies to go green and maybe help lower the earth's temp by like 3 degrees at the G8, so dispatching 42 to NoKo to bring home innocent girls could be considered a Prestige victoy too.

Bad Vlad needs a Prestige Victory. Doing his best Lord Godiva Gaplike PR pic and sorteeing Akula class attack subs off Great Satan's eastern seaboard, wargaming yet another panzer blitz to lick the rest of Georgia's peach clean, putting his foot down about missile shields in ex Warsaw Pact turf -- seem geared to the proletariat at home.

Persia needs a Prestige Victory and may be copying Dear Leader's snatch and grab ploy to firm up shaky support at home with hostage students while reminding Great And Little Satan that Hiz'B'Allah got claws on a regional scale may be best interpreted as an Iranian caveat to Little Satan's idea of a prestige victory.

Pic "Hole: Live Through This"