Peace and War Essay

It was a wonderful period in human history. Peace existed through the large mass of geographic territory that many people of different cultures inhabited. It was the summer and the multitude of the population of these various neighboring countries enjoyed the prosperity they were blessed with. Then, a time moved forward†¦ It was a tragic and horrible way to die: drowning in one’s own blood because holes have been burned in the lungs due to the corrosive inhaled vapors that the canisters exploded. This was the unfortunate result of chemical and gas weapons. Could there be a worse way to die? Yes: starving on the battlefield as evidenced by gaunt corpses littering the landscape. This was the reality of World War One. Europe was a beautiful place in the early 20th century and the notion of war was the furthest thing from anyone’s mind. That is, it was far removed from people’s thoughts until a chain of events occurred that launched the massive devastation of The Great War. Perhaps those people in Europe only deluded themselves into thinking war as impossible. After all, the history of Europe (and many parts of the rest of the world) is one that chronicles war after war after war. The ability to live without war is simply a utopian fantasy that is not based in reality. In evidence of this, all one needs to do is look at the entirety of history. Throughout history, thousands of wars have been fought. Some have been justifiable acts of self defense, others have been aggressive acts of imperialism, and others have been simply been colossal errors in judgment that had tragic consequences. Regardless of the reasons for the onset of war, the fact remains that wars occurred and will continue to occur throughout human history. Peace and War Page 2 In reality, there will always be aggressive actions as long as nations seek international and domestic goals that may be at odds with other nations; cultural differences exist between societies that lead to tensions; imperial expansions and aggressions become a nation’s standard policy; dictatorships that are not accountable to their population continue to flourish; and human nature continues to embody Darwin’s model of â€Å"survival of the fittest. † This does not mean that human beings are bloodthirsty and crave violence and the subjugation of others. What it means is that nations seek self-preservation. In order to maintain this self-preservation (whether it is a noble goal or an imperial one), nations will require military buildups in order to deter interference or threats to their international and domestic interests. When such threats are perceived action will be taken. Of course, such action usually invites retaliation and the result is often full scale war. While we wish such a situation were avoidable, it has occurred so often in history that it was become, for lack of a better word, â€Å"standard operating procedure† on the part of certain world powers and they are not going to change this policy any time soon. In other words, for war to be eliminated from the landscape of human existence, then human nature itself must change. For all serious considerations, human nature is not going to change on such a grand scale that war actions become obsolete. Again, such a concept is utopianism not based in pragmatic, practical reality; but, rather, a complete disregard for the consistent actions of human beings since biblical times. As such, war will never disappear and will remain part of the human landscape forever more.