The Axis powers invaded Belgium and Serbia in an act of naked territorial aggression. The Allies rose to combat them.
There was nothing ridiculous about WW1. It was one of the most sincere wars in history.
Americans played an honorable role in that war - it's wrong that the WW1 memorial is in such a state.
No, it was a series of domino responses just because so-so is friends with so-so, even though almost none of them had anything to do with any serious action. Think about it. How did a whole war spring out of a Slav Austro-Hungarian national assassin shooting an Austrian archduke? How did Germany become the big bad guy from that? Because they all made agreements that they would back certain nations if they wanted to retaliate. It was just a big domino effect of retaliation. Austria, Russia, Germany, France, England. Yes, it was ridiculous and completely pointless. “The First World War was a tragic and unnecessary conflict.” - John Keegan, English author in “The First World War”