In
his 2012 book The End of War, John
Horgan explained that it is really possible for humankind to bring all war to
an end. Of course, he did not consider this to be very likely. Here is a quote
that indicates that there could be an end to all war, if the United States
decided to seek this goal. But it is also extremely unlikely that the United
States will ever do this:
“We claim to
revere peace and human rights—and yet we keep embarking on unnecessary wars, in
which we treat alleged enemies and even civilians cruelly. We pay lip service
to the principles of national sovereignty and international law while secretly
carrying out deadly commando raids and drone attacks around the world. We sell
weapons to other nations, and to their adversaries. We prop up dictators if
they let us build military bases on their land, exploit their cheap labor, or
sell us their oil and other resources at low prices. We are guilty of shameless
hypocrisy. If we practiced what we preached—if we showed through our actions
that we recognize how wrong war is—we Americans could lead the entire world to
an enduring peace.”
This
was back during the Obama administration. Things are even worse now under Trump
who is best known for antagonizing even our allies. It is clear to everyone
that we will never stop selling arms to dictators and terrorists, even when
these arms come back to take aim at us. America profits—or, at least the
American corporations who control the federal government profit—from keeping
the world on the brink of war.
War
in Yemen, 2018, from New York Times
This
is yet another part of a cynical viewpoint of life, but one that can allow us
to be healthy and happy. We need to simply accept the fact that the world will
never embrace peace and prosperity, and then make preparations for living as
well as possible despite this fact. I can’t do anything about the world, but
just about my own life, work, and relationships.
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