The Selfless Won’t Have War
As I watch media coverage of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, I can’t help but ask myself, “how do we prevent this bad behavior from occurring?” We have come so far as a global society in 2022, yet we still continue to abide the horrific act of war. With free and useful information at our disposal nearly whenever and wherever we want it, what stops us from gaining the knowledge and insight to prevent armed conflicts that cause unnecessary death and destruction from occurring?
Every person on this planet has the right to voice their opinion on war. A ten year old girl in Syria will likely tell you that war took the life of her mother, father, and brother when a rocket blast suddenly caused the roof of her apartment to collapse. A Ukrainian family that recently took refuge in Hungary, will tell you that if not for war, they would still be in their home near Kyiv, but because of constant artillery bombardments, they felt they must leave everything they know in order to preserve their lives. Even if one has never engaged in or been subjected to the act of war, that person likely can still comprehend the completely negative consequences of war. For example, a 17 year old American high school student in 2022 probably has a good understanding of war because they’ve been exposed to news programs and war films from the past decade and beyond that clearly describes the basic nature of war.
One would think that possessing the knowledge that war kills, destroys, and disrupts would contribute to a global plan-of-action to cooperate and resolve disputes without violence. Think about it, who really wants to die, see their family perish, or lose their home and their way of life? Unfortunately, a global renunciation of warfare has not occurred so to prevents its manifestation. Rather, it seems as though the old beat of the war drum continues today.
I’ll admit it. As an American male growing up during the 1990s and early 2000s, I kind of idolized war, or at least admired those who participated in warfare. Arnold Schwarzenegger movies and Saving Private Ryan fueled my youthful desire to experience war. News coverage of the invasion of Iraq and bombing Taliban positions in Afghanistan made me think as a junior in high school, “I want to be there.” Crazy right? Later, as an infantryman serving in combat units with the U.S. Army I faced the reality of armed conflict. I was able to exact violence upon other human beings in Iraq and lead others who were doing the same thing, without feeling sympathy for those I caused harm or death upon. I feel that my experiences in combat are likely indicative of the biological and systemic influences toward warfare that have plagued humans for centuries.
Of course, there’s got to be a reason war keeps on happening in modernity, and young men like myself willfully volunteer to serve in combat units that have the sole purpose of destroying, “the enemy,” as military doctrine describes the foe in war. History is a good teacher of patterns and mistakes to avoid. Regarding warfare, history teaches us that economics commands its recurring existence. Vikings raided Anglo-Saxon England to loot and steal crops; the Japanese Empire invaded Manchuria for fossil fuels; and a major factor to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is over disagreements between the two states concerning access to and dissemination of natural resources. Regardless of these economic incentives, is it not time to stand up as a global society, and say there are better ways to manage our disputes?
Competition is a part of life on Earth. There’s no way around it. Every species has to compete to service, and for humans, competition makes us better; however, warfare is the pinnacle of toxic competition. War is competition taken to the extreme that we as a society should no longer tolerate. Of course, one must defend themselves when in distress, and use strategy, planning, and determinative execution when doing so. Although, before we find ourselves emersed in conflict, can we conclude that the cost associated with warfare are no longer acceptable to be subjected upon human beings? Thus, we have reached a point in society where war is no longer acceptable.
How is this practice enforced? Perhaps instead of coinciding with what has been done in the past, we look within. A nation state is a compilation of individuals. What we can do is dig down dip within ourselves, and demand that we be better for other people. Any self-help guru now days will tell you that they’ve achieved fulfillment in their lives because they found a way to combat the selfish instincts within their selves every day, so that they can serve other people in a productive fashion.
For me, a selfless attitude at 18 years old would override any personal desire to combat other individuals; desire surely motivated for personal gain with no consideration for another person’s needs. Unfortunately, personal success motivated my actions at that time. As a result, I generally benefited from the peril of others, mainly Iraqi nationals, yet the experience did provide some insight into the value of selfless action.
Imagine if we all did a little less for ourselves every day, and performed more undertakings that authentically benefit another person. If this concept were fundamental within the majority of human beings on the planet, we would have leaders of governments that would understand the negative consequences possible for their counterpart if they considered exacting war upon them. This simplistic yet crucial shift in individual attitudes is surely a good step toward eliminating war. Becoming selfless individuals, less about ourselves and more for each other, negates any reason for the act of war to occur.
