Blog Question

"Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history than has any other factor, and the contrary opinion is wishful thinking at its worst. breed that forget this basic truth have always paid for it with their lives and freedoms."

He's right.

One cannot argue that when faced with a problem, the most effective to to get what you want is through force; every nation, civilization and society (and countless individuals) has resorted to violence to achieve its goals. History is a tapestry of violence, of its utilization to build empires and protect sovereignty.

This of course is true only if one examines history as nearsightedly as possible. Acts of violence settle immediate issues; by looking at the ramifications of violence, we see that a violent past will continue to play out into the future. Heinlein offers the example of Napoleon and Wellington to prove his point.

By crushing Napoleon at Waterloo, Duke Wellington preserved British dominance and protected the European continent. However, France's defeat in the Napoleonic Wars led to the Franco-Prussian War, Germany sought vengeance for France's brutal campaign and occupancy during the time of Napoleon, and the taking of Alsace Lorraine. Enmity between the two nations would help fuel WWI, the outcome of then led to WWII, when Britain found its dominance again threatened by a new European superpower that has already conquered the rest of the continent. The cycle of violence only ended after WWII, when the U.S. and its allies decided to rebuild instead of destroy.

Israel and Palestine, India and Pakistan, and internal conflicts in nations like Mexico, Colombia, Nigeria, these are all proof that violent action by the government
and dissenting individuals only begets more violence. To believe that violence is the most effective way to settle conflict is to adopt the irresponsible and totally morally reprehensible belief that none of our actions have consequences.