FEATURED ESSAYS 1. Hell: That Place In Your Mind 2. Hazing 3. The Divine Comedy: Dante 4. Sin Is Ignorance - Socratic De 5. What Is Love? 6. What Dreams May Come 7. Flowers For Algernon 8. Faustus Essay 9. Paradise Lost: Where Does Evil Co... 10. Flowers For Algernon 2 11. The Problem Of Evil 12. The Yellow Wallpaper: What The He... 13. Dante S Inferno 2 14. Interpersonal Communication

Definition of War: Sherman's Hell

 The term "war" is one that most competent English speaking people are
familiar with, and it is one that most of those same people could attempt
to define. The only problem lies in the definition that one would receive.
War is so complex and multifaceted that it is truly understood by only a
few people. Wars date far back into history, and they have been fought
for more reasons than could be listed. It seems strange, but untimalely,
they are fought for one reason. Freedom has been the issue of every war
since the beginning of time, and whenever a group of individuals feels
that their freedom has been infringed upon, war is always  possibility.
 It is only logical that in a war there must be some form of a protagonist
as well as an antagonist, but in many cases it is unclear who gets which
label. The American Civil War is a perfect example. The South wanted the
freedom to make decisions that benefited a largely agricultural society,
and when that freedom was denied they withdrew from the Union. The Union,
on the other hand, viewed the South as a group of radicals making an
attempt to dissolve the unity of states that their ancestors had worked
so hard to create. As a result they felt their freedom of unity and
nationhood had been taken away. It is difficult to say who was in the
right, but when all of the negotiations had been exhausted,  war was the
result. In this case there was no other option because both sides believed
in their cause.
   Gen. William T. Sherman said  ³War is Hell², and that quote has
remained famous because even though simple, it is accurate. American men
spent weeks at a time in rat infested trenches with lice all over their
bodies in both World War  One and Two.  There are countless examples of
horrible war crimes, biological weapons, napalm strikes, and of course
nuclear weapons. War has claimed millions of lives throughout history. 
War is glorified by many, but the people who know see no glory in it, yet
they do it for freedom, and most if asked would say that they would do it
again.  In all of these wars, the soldiers believed they were fighting for
their own personal freedom, or the freedom of some other group of
individuals.  Had they not believed this, they would not have risked their
lives.
 War it a last resort. Generally speaking, people do not like war, and
want to avoid it at all costs. It is believed that a large part of why
America went to Vietnam was for monetary reasons. Companies have to make
all of the ships, helicopters, airplanes, and supplies. As a result, jobs
are created and the economy in stimulated, but the U.S. government could
never tell that to the public. It is very possible that these were
ulterior reasons for the Vietnam war, but the government simply turned it
into an issue of freedom. As a result the public was told that after
trying to make peace with North Vietnam, the U.S.  Navy was continually
being assaulted and that there was no option but to go to war. At that
point Americans had the option to believe that they were involved for
noble and acceptable reasons.
 Even though freedom of some type is directly related to all major
conflicts, it is not necessarily the freedom of all those involved.
Operation Desert Storm is a good example. Though it was technically not a
war, in had many of the characteristics attributed to war. The United
States was involved because of Iraq¹s blatant disregard for the freedom of
the people of Kuwait. There have been countless arguments about whether 
the United States should be the ³policeman² to the world, but a final
decision will never made because there is answer.
 War is about freedom. The cynics will tell you that Americans go to war
for ulterior reasons like money,  and there may be some truth to that. The
argument has been made Operation Desert Storm would never have occurred
had it not been for oil. It is possible that this is true, but if it was
not for the oil, Kuwait would seem to powerful countries as much more
distant place. The fact is, Kuwait does have oil, and as a result the U.S.
deals with Kuwait on a very close and personal level. With this kind of
relationship, it is only natural that we would protect Kuwait if their
freedom was threatened. War is painful, bloody, and terrible, but as long
as people want freedom, it will be a way of life.

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