WAR DOGS

Anuma Maxwell -

 War Dogs

By Anuma Maxwell

"Only the dead have seen the end of war"


In the movie "Black Hawk Down," there is an opening quote by George Santayana which reads: "Only the dead have seen the end of war". Where war begins, there can't be war without bloodshed; when World War One started, you thought that was all. We read about World War Two and saw how war affects society and how war affects the economy. This then begs the question: can war be justified? Can war be ethical?


If you trace your war history, where warlords and war dogs perpetuated war crimes, you would conclude that war can never be justified. The genocide by Hitler that wiped out more than six million Jews is a perfect example. The war-like situation in Ukraine, where hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee their homes and seek shelter in neighboring countries, War is not freedom because it's the innocent that bear the consequences. Lives and properties would be lost.

 

I remember asking myself this question a few weeks back: "Will war break out in 2022? It was so awkward to comprehend because it would sound insane to think of a sovereign, autonomous, and independent nation being invaded by another. But then, I was mistaken, as the war zone in Ukraine has proven otherwise.

 

Man continues to be man's greatest enemy. We keep forgetting the mistakes of the past and history keeps repeating itself. As George Santayana opines, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." War and peace are not synonymous; war cannot bring peace; it can only bring destruction; so, why is war waged?This calls for sober reflection.

 

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