war thesis

this is the intro from my final, 12-page thesis that i have to defend for my history class. i haven’t written a history paper since AP U.S. History class in HIGH SCHOOL, so it has been an “interesting” experience. just thought i’d tack it onto my blog since this is a place where i can post some of my work slash really random crap :)

Warfare is in fact endemic to human nature. It is merely inevitable and unavoidable. This follows the common belief or concept that “history repeats itself.” War does not cease to exist. Regardless of whether it is seen as irrational, unjustifiable, or simply wrong, it is still undeniable. The question then is, how do we rationalize the reasons of why some nations choose to involve themselves in warfare and mass killings?

Albert Einstein once stated, “The release of atomic energy has not created a new problem. It has merely made more urgent the necessity of solving an existing one.” The threat of the atomic bomb and nuclear weapons came about in the twentieth century. Today, there are many nations who are in possession of nuclear arms, and among them is the United States of America. Can warfare be eliminated altogether if these weapons no longer existed? Or will abolishing them only rid of one aspect of warfare, a horrific reality that will always exist?

We must first allow ourselves to look at warfare objectively. We must break it down into its bare elements and attempt to rationalize what war is.

Quotes to use in thesis:
“Every time you buy a rifle, you’re taking away food from someone.” ~Dwight Eisenhower
“Loyalty to my country at all times. Loyalty to my government when it deserves it.” ~Mark Twain
“Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.” ~Peter Yustanoff
“Beware of a standing army.” ~FDR
“As long as war’s wicked, we are interested. As soon as it becomes vulgar, we lose interest.” ~Oscar Wilde

Rough outline:

• paragraph 1: war is inevitable in society
• you’re always fighting the last battle
• use Sun Tzu, “the art of war”
• certain cultures are just warlike
• 1st word in western civilization = “RAGE” (the iliad)
• moral equivalent of war (william james)
• war is an extension of politics
• paragraph 2: when is war justifiable? when used for DEFENSIVE reasons
• nations only get directly involved if it has to do with them
• is it reasonable? yes, it makes sense.
• or is it selfish? don’t help other nations out, just wait until you are affected
• no one will take action/get involved unless triggered/threatened**
• paragraph 3: U.S. should remain an isolationist nation
  
• but we are not…we are the bullies
• the U.S. is not “innocent”
• always involved in others’ affairs and nosy…BUT, we need to be in order to remain world’s strongest nation/power
• dates back to “white man’s burden” and manifest destiny
• paragraph 4: nuclear weapons race, A-bomb
• U.S., India, China, France, etc.
• Japan’s standing: Hiroshima (peace)
• government is secretive—have faith in them? support them? or let them be because sometimes you just would rather not know about what they’re hiding? (use mark twain quote)
• paragraph 5: GETTING TO THE POINT
• the present = war on terrorism = urgent
• is anyone going to use the A-bomb?
• once there's a threat = more urgency
• otherwise, deny war and don’t want to be involved
• 4 states of warfare (currently in clash of civilizations, unavoidable)
• A bomb vs. mass bombing over time
• paragraph 6: ARGUE OTHER SIDE
• rephrase albert Einstein quote. talk about his standing with the manhattan project
• people against dropping the bomb (gov’t vs. military decisions)
• need to eliminate a bomb and nuclear weapons
• no war if no threat
• conclusion
• restate thesis