The tragic end of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, which crashed Thursday, killing 298 passengers and crew, is a reminder of what some call “the new world order.” Evidence so far points to Flight 17’s downing by a rebel group in Ukraine, who may have thought they were shooting down a Ukraine military plane.

The new order challenges the bounds of the world order that came into favor at the end of World War II. The old order encourages representative government, fair trails, independent judicial systems, the will of the people over elites, and so on.

The new order operates with clandestine rules something like gang warfare. It is an in-between place of half truths or of outright lies told as truths, of might makes right. Ukraine is the latest battleground between the two orders.

Ukraine is a country left over from the Cold War. The progress of democracy in Ukraine since it left the failing Soviet Union in the heyday of the 1990’s was halting at best. Two steps backward followed one step forward. Corrupt leaders and their equally corrupt tycoon followers abetted the backward direction.

A movement apparently favored by a majority of Ukrainians (mostly Ukrainian speaking) recently tossed out the latest corrupt leader, who wanted to ally with Russia. They elected a new government. It signed an agreement with Europe, turning away from Russia. Russian speakers in the eastern part of Ukraine, unwilling to abide by the majority decision, rebelled and called on Russia for help.

Russia, still smarting from humiliation at losing the prestige it had during the Cold War, saw a chance to rebuild influence and territory. Russia has supported the rebels in various ways, short of outright invasion. The facts are murky as to how much help has been given. This type of situation illustrates “the new world order.” The strewn bodies of innocent victims is just collateral damage from what is really no order at all.