The reality of war
War is like a fire in human society, the fuel of which is living beings. I find this analogy particularly appropriate and useful. Modern warfare is fought primarily with various forms of fire, but we are so conditioned to see it as exciting that we talk about this or that wonderful weapon as a remarkable piece of technology without considering that, when actually used, it could kill living people will burn. .
War is also very similar to a fire in the way it spreads. If an area becomes weak, the commanding officer sends reinforcements. This is throwing living people into the fire. But because we have been brainwashed to think this way, we do not take into account the suffering of individual soldiers. No soldier wants to get hurt or die. None of his loved ones want any harm to happen to him. If a soldier is killed or maimed for life, at least five or ten more people – his relatives and friends – suffer. We should all be shocked by the magnitude of this tragedy, but we are too confused.
It is not only in times of war that military institutions are destructive. By design, they were the worst violators of human rights, and it is the soldiers themselves who suffer most consistently from their abuse. After the responsible officer has given a wonderful explanation of the importance of the army, its discipline and the need to conquer the enemy, the rights of the great mass of soldiers are almost completely taken away. They are then forced to give up their individual will and ultimately sacrifice their lives. Moreover, once an army has become a mighty force, there is every danger that it will destroy the happiness of its own country.
In every society there are people with destructive intentions, and the temptation to take charge of an organization capable of fulfilling their desires can become overwhelming. But no matter how evil or malicious the many murderous dictators who are currently able to oppress their nations and cause international problems, it is clear that they cannot harm others or destroy countless human lives if they do not have a military organization controlled by society is accepted and tolerated. .
Militarism is also very expensive. Pursuing peace through military force places an enormously wasteful burden on society. Governments are spending enormous amounts of money on increasingly complex weapons, even though no one really wants to use them. Not only money, but also valuable energy and human intelligence are wasted, while fear only increases.
However, I want to make it clear that while I am deeply opposed to war, I am not in favor of reconciliation. It is often necessary to take a strong stand to counter unjust aggression. For example, it is clear to all of us that the Second World War was completely justified. It “saved civilization” from the tyranny of Nazi Germany, as Winston Churchill so aptly put it. In my opinion, the Korean War was also just because it gave South Korea the opportunity to gradually develop democracy.
But we can only judge afterwards whether or not a conflict was justified on moral grounds.
For example, we can now see that during the Cold War the principle of nuclear deterrence had some value. Nevertheless, it is very difficult to assess all these matters with any degree of accuracy. War is violence and violence is unpredictable. Therefore, it is better to avoid this if possible, and never to assume that we know in advance whether the outcome of a particular war will be favorable or not.
In the case of the Cold War, for example, while deterrence helped promote stability, it did not create real peace. Over the past forty years in Europe we have seen only the absence of war, which has not been real peace, but a facsimile based on fear. At best, building weapons to maintain peace serves only as a temporary measure. As long as opponents do not trust each other, all kinds of factors can disrupt the balance of power. Lasting peace can only be assured on the basis of sincere trust.