But we live withe memory of WWI and WWII. So no one today would say, “the iron dice must roll” and commit to total war as a matter of rote procedure, because we all know the costs, especially the Russians. Putin carefully avoids using conscripts for his adventures, not just because their training and equipment are abysmal but because the Russian people will not tolerate losses for anything except direct defense of Russia.
Nixon mined Hai Phong harbor in 1972...when the old Soviet Union had 30,000 warheads on constant high alert...They went ballistic...Nixon said too gd bad...you got 24 hours to get your ships out. talk about some stones...Trump acts like Nixon when it comes to this kind of stuff.
Anything can happen in a war.