Peace Is the Attractor

Conflict is a configuration held against a gradient — it must be paid for continuously (mobilization, vigilance, destruction, opportunity cost); peace costs nothing to hold. So peace is the cheaper state by theory, and war is what needs the explanation (Fearon 1995; Axelrod & Hamilton 1981; Collier 1999). But &#x27;peace always prevails&#x27; over-reaches: on any finite horizon conflict can be…