Is war part of being human?

Last night I was watching a program where they were talking to people, who were involved in one way or another, in the first World War. It was a heartbreaking program, made even more so, as it happens to this day.

War is an ugly thing. Sadly, I have been in combat and know the raw ugliness of fighting a battle you sometimes do not understand.

War effects everybody, well, the citizens mostly. The men and women being sent off to combat, the girlfriends, wives and partners who have to say goodbye, some of who will never see the person again, the children, who have to live without that parent, sometime permanently. Sad, even heartbreaking, does not come close to expressing how I feel about war.

Humans have always fought each other, on one scale or another. Either it is one against one, gangs, countries, religions...it just seems we cannot get along as a species. In the romantic days of knights and castles, the leaders were the ones who led the battle. The king himself, was often the first to face the foe, followed by the rest of the leadership. Leaders were brave then. They showed commitment to their cause.

Today it is so different. We have cowardly politicians deciding in what arena to fight in, deciding what cause to fight for - all in the name of the cause they think is right and just. They give the order and thousands of men and woman march off to face an enemy they have no grudge against, to kill other people's loved ones, to destroy an enemy that is often in the same boat as them- helpless pawns in somebody else's chess game.

Billions are spend each year to develop smarter, more efficient and effective ways to kill other humans, while billions starve to death daily, or have no houses or access to medical care. Thousands die every year for what? And after the war, the spoils and credit go to the politicians and the generals who never even set foot near the combat zone, let alone were at any risk. Not only do they cower behind the political shield, but they ensure their family members are protected too.

We are so advanced, in terms of technology, yet we are still the primitive beings inside that were were from rightthe start. We need to work together to ensure our survival. As a race, we need to accept war for what it is- a waste of human lives, an expensive game played by our leaders to satisfy their hunger for power.

To end off, some lines from Guns N Roses' song, Civil War. This hit's home.

'And I don't need your civil warIt feeds the rich, while it buries the poorYou're power hungry, sellin' soldiersIn a human grocery store, ain't that fresh?'
'Look in the doubt we've wallowedLook at the leaders we've followedLook at the lies we've swallowedAnd I don't want to hear no more'
Look at your young men fightingLook at your women cryingLook at your young men dyingThe way they've always done before