Moral Bankruptcy

War

Can war be justified? I think so. There can be many justifications for war.

Most of these justifications are based upon greed – deciding who gets to control resources.

Many of these justifications are ego based – desire for power.

Some of these justifications are based on a need to protect ourselves from some other predator.

Sometimes, (though very rarely I think), these justifications are even based on compassion and charity – the desire to help others out of a terrible situation.

These are all justifications – some good, some bad. But can war ever be “moral”? I think not.

In order to win a war, one must commit acts that are not moral – that is plain and simple. If a leader is going to commit his nation to war, then he had better feel pretty convinced that his justification for this war is rock-solid and will stand the test of hindsight and introspection.

Nietzsche said, “If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”

Our world is full of soldiers who have done what is required to win wars. Some of these soldiers were on the winning side, and some were on the losing side. Some committed acts of greater cruelty and immorality than others. Most are good and moral human beings, who were asked to “look into the abyss” by the leaders of their country, and they responded as a solder responds – with loyalty and obedience. For most, the abyss has looked back into them in some way.

I have an uncle who served in WW2 – the Great War. For most Americans, this was the last time that our nation entered into a conflict that seemed “just and right”. My uncle looked into the abyss for 3+ years in the South Pacific. He has spent his life since as a quiet semi-recluse. He farms, in a small community, so it is easy to avoid people. Nobody notices his reclusive nature. For 60 years, he has lived in the shadow of the abyss, as it has stared back at him. He knows what humanity is capable of.

My generation dealt with Vietnam. While our government insisted that the conflict was both just and necessary, many questioned this. 50,000 Americans gave their lives trusting a government that lied, and well over a million Vietnamese civilians and soldiers gave their lives. Many came back from Vietnam wondering why they had been there – what they had really been fighting for. Many came back with the ghost of the abyss watching over them for the rest of their lives. History has shown that those who questioned our motives for being in that war were correct – that much of our motivation was based on greed, with many in the defense industry gaining great wealth while our generation wrestled with the abyss.

And what of today? We are asking the generation of my sons to look long into the abyss in the Iraqi desert, and many are struggling with what is looking back. Many in our country question our real motives, while a few in the defense industry grow quite fat profiteering from the war that Bush has insisted on – many in his own administration are growing rich daily on war profits. They are not asked to sacrifice, they seem to feel they have a right to a profit.

In The Great War, we made it illegal to profit from the war. Doesn’t that small sacrifice seem reasonable, when so many are asked to look long into the abyss?

The abyss is looking back into the hearts of our sons and daughters – how long will we allow this to continue? I wonder, does President Bush sense an abyss looking into his heart? Does Mr. Cheney?