What is it good for? Pretty much only that song-- Lucy Whitman Sandmeyer

War and violence are truths of humanity so far. No decade in the history of humanity, no matter how we’re dubbed it in retrospect, has ever been truly peaceful. And that’s terrifying. Me? I’m a pacifist but I also think that pacifism is naïve. While I want complete eradication of war and peaceful compromise as a means to all ends, I also can’t imagine that being possible right now. Basically, I have no idea how to think. All I know is I believe war is to be avoided at all costs. This isn’t like a, “Well, I asked [insert country here] really politely to stop attacking [insert thing being attacked] and they didn’t so now I guess we have to go to war with them,” situation, I’m talking about when a large, incredibly ruthless power is giving no option but full-fledged warfare that can’t be fixed economically or politically. I also will never condone a war that occurs because of personal beliefs. When a dictator personally believes that once race or culture or ethnicity or religion is wrong, they are wrong. When a powerful government thinks their way of governing is the best and everyone else’s is wrong, they are wrong. When that dictator is crushing those people, or when that government is attacking the other, that is when war is justified. It is in the protection of the people. Still, it’s a complex issue. I can’t say with certainty that I will support a war ever or that I will never support a war. But I can say this, Germany and Japan are (metaphorically) killin’ it and they didn’t have a military for a long time. Just think about it.