The impact of war

Since time immemorial, war and conflict have been an integral part of the human civilization and have made a tremendous impact on us. Mankind has suffered immeasurable loss and agony as a result of fighting amongst each other. As the saying goes, if aliens were to arrive today here, they would probably not recognize human beings as a form of intelligent life here - after all, which intelligent species would kill its own kind?

India is a largely peaceful nation today, free of war - but at what cost are we enjoying this peace? Every week, our soldiers sacrifice their lives while fighting for the people of their motherland, despite all odds. If it were not for them guarding our borders, I don't think I would have been here today blogging without a constant fear of being bombed from the skies or looted at gunpoint. A lot of people living in other countries, however, are not as fortunate as us.

Take the example of Syria. The country has been torn to pieces by conflict and millions of people have been displaced. Countless people have lost their homes and families as a result of the war - the tragedy that continues to occur over there till this day is unimaginable, such has been its impact. A similar situation exists in Afghanistan, Iraq and in large parts of Africa, to name a few.

The saddest part of the wars is that most of these are avoidable. They begin as a result of the inflated egos and vested interests of a handful of the so-called leaders, and end up damaging the whole population. Hitler was responsible for the mass killing of millions of people - he did it for his own personal amusement and twisted principles. The innocent citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the victims of a long drawn-out World War II, and the impact of the radiation after-effects of the atom bombs that were dropped continue to plague the cities to this day. The Vietnam War was started on the basis of an unclear agenda and ended up with nothing but the loss of thousands of young people on both sides, as well as many more people who were permanently disabled as a result of it.

War and its offshoot, terrorism, are some of the biggest problems that have an impact on the modern world. It is rather incredulous to think that the greatest challenges that mankind face today are not from natural causes or disease but wholly man-made ones. Every year, governments all over the world are forced to spend a huge chunk of their resources for military purposes. Only if everyone lived in harmony, these funds could have been put to much better use. One can only hope that better sense prevails and people all over the world realize the negative impact that war has upon this world, for then the world would be a much better place.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.