Europe Is Extinguishing Itself

‘The lamps are going out all over Europe,” British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey wistfully and presciently remarked shortly before the United Kingdom’s entry into World War I. “We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.”

Over a century later, the lamps are going out once more. And though there is again a war on the European continent, one whose carnage is not to be neglected, Europe has set an altogether different blood-dimmed tide upon itself that also demands witness. If it is less visible to the world, it is only because the lives affected are in the dark — by being denied the possibility of ever existing.

About the Author

Jack Butler

Jack Butler is a former submissions editor at National Review.

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‘The lamps are going out all over Europe,” British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey wistfully and presciently remarked shortly before the United Kingdom’s entry into World War I. “We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.”

Over a century later, the lamps are going out once more. And though there is again a war on the European continent, one whose carnage is not to be neglected, Europe has set an altogether different blood-dimmed tide upon itself that also demands witness. If it is less visible to the world, it is only because the lives affected are in the dark — by being denied the possibility of ever existing.