Willy-nilly, I check the World Wide Web every hour or so. The Crimean referendum is the only thing I am interested in, though. Why? It is a foregone conclusion already, for Crimea will rejoin Russia no matter what. Aware of the wider implications of this threadbare show in democracy, I keep wondering about the future. Almost exactly a century after the beginning of World War I, the referendum cannot but smack of World War III. As any history book can testify, the assassination in Sarajevo was only a trigger. Or was it just a pretext? One fine day, the Crimean referendum may well be remembered as such a trigger, as well. Are we talking about weeks, months, or maybe even years? It is anyone’s guess, of course. The world is deeply divided, and the exact sequence of events leading up to another worldwide conflagration is rather irrelevant. Still, today’s referendum has all the markings of an event of historical significance. The real mystery is why I keep checking the news with eagerness that borders on the ridiculous. As though I will learn anything of any importance on this fateful day. More, as though the future can be revealed ahead of its time.