Today, we can highlight two common viewpoints on the nature and ethics of war. The first one states that war is a natural trait of humans. Following Seneca’s “naturalia non sunt turpia” – what is natural is not disgusting. So, there’s nothing wrong with a little pushing around or more extensive fighting. The second one argues that war is pure evil for all its participants, and pacifism is pure good. Hence, following Cicero, they state – a bad peace is better than a good war. In other words, peace at any price.
However, “The Devil is in the details.” Yes, every war is a painful urge for aggression for the sake of power. However, this doesn’t mean they are present on both sides. There are three options for deep reasons for entering a war. The first is when two inadequates clash. For example, the German-Soviet stage of World War II. The second – participation is caused by obligations taken and legitimate precautions about future security. For example, Britain’s entry into World War II. The third option is a war between an aggressor and its victim. We have an example before our very eyes.
For the first option, peace at any price is the best solution. For the second – worth considering. Will the aggressor stop after the victim surrenders? Did Austria’s surrender stop Hitler? Or that of Czechoslovakia, Poland, France? If Britain hadn’t entered the war, it would have been swallowed by the “Sea Lion.” Did Finland’s surrender stop Stalin?…
The desire for war is a psychological defect, similar to the one serial killer maniacs have. It’s like drug addiction. Drug addiction, like cancer, is incurable; they can only have periods of remission. Maniacs don’t stop. They can be stopped by concrete walls or weapons – the victim’s demonstrated willingness to defend or the defeat of the maniac himself. So, if a warlike maniac appears on the planet, he must be immediately isolated or destroyed. Everything else is just scaling up a future catastrophe.
By the way, maniacs love to hang out together, even if they later attack each other. Stalin was directly drawn to Hitler. Trump is not just a KGB-recruited pervert or an egocentric narcissist – he just has an existential-emotional pull to various degenerates like Putin, Kim, and the like. It’s a hard emotional dependency with future sharp emotional swings.
Pacifism regarding the war desire of two complex-ridden maniacs is noble. Pacifism regarding entering a war through fulfilling one’s obligations or protecting a victim is lowly. Pacifism regarding conducting war by those defending themselves from an aggressor is vile. And if it’s a war against an attempt of genocide of one’s own people, then for such pacifists, an additional tenth circle in hell needs to be built.
(from the book “The Way of Man”)
