The MIT Technology Review for November and December bears an interesting label: the war and peace issue. Interestingly, the cover page is dedicated to Amazon, which is poised to become America’s newest defense giant. According to the article dedicated to this company, it brings many an innovation into national security, including facial-recognition software, which can detect age, gender, as well as certain emotions. But the first article that has attracted my attention is by a war veteran, who argues that so-called clean war is bad war, as it allows technology to increase moral distance, thus increasing the killing. Indeed, I can imagine many an aficionado of computer games shooting left and right without any remorse. Another article that struck me as worthy of careful reading is from another veteran, who points at shadow wars as a great danger in the future. Everything is achieved by covert and clandestine means, and Russia’s war in Crimea a few years ago is mentioned as the best example of such wars. Predictably enough, several articles concern the use of artificial intelligence or AI in future wars. Cyber warfare is attracting ever more attention, and it offers many conundrums that are difficult, if not impossible, to fathom ahead of time. But I spent most of my time reading an interview with yet another veteran, who happens to be one of the world’s most decorated soldiers at this time. When asked whether war is inherent in man, he responds that his instinct is that war is “sadly” inevitable. And he adds that we should always assume that there are humans out there who are prepared to achieve their goals through war. Everything else covered by the war and peace issue is a matter of debate, but these words from a veteran of note are best remembered for good. In retrospect, the only surprise in this issue is the word “peace” in the label.