I Believe People Come Into Your Life For a Reason

Not fighting is the losing proposition, but so is fighting. Take your head of the history textbook and talk to a parent who lost a son in the Vietnam war on either side. No one won. Talk to a brother who lost a brother in the Gulf War on either side. No one won. Just for "fun," talk to someone who fought on either side in World War II. Probe their memories... you got... no one won.

We have conditioned ourselves to believe war is necessary and comforted ourselves by reciting that it is a "necessary evil." But, the fact of the matter is, we don't have the self-discipline to avoid it. As ironic as it is, war is the path of least resistance and it's the one we will always take... out of laziness, not out of necessity.

I get what you are saying, and it's a noble sentiment. But it seems to me that you are looking at history through a purely American, last 50 years perspective, which have largely been wars of dubious intervention and not defence. What if Europe had not defended itself against the Nazis? As mentioned, war should be avoided, but as long as there are bad people born into this world who value selfish gain over justice, it is an unavoidable necessity. What did pacifism do for the Jews in Nazi Germany?

@MarkPaul, that is a nice thought but history doesn't support it. War should be avoided, but it's absolutely necessary to survive in a hostile world, and will continue to be until we are all part of a single hive mind. When the situation inevitably calls for it, not fighting is the losing proposition.

No. As it always has been, war is a losing proposition with the only way to win is to not play. But, we don't have the self-discipline to stop ourselves.