Recent Ideas: From the Whims of a Nation, Part One

I previously had a discussion on Facebook about patriotism, state sovereignty, world government and the end of all war. I have a friend who is in the military and is very patriotic. He posted a reminder about Pearl Harbor, and I responded with this paraphrased question: “Why do we not honor the dead of other countries?” Now, I may make a post on why people honor the dead in the first place, but that is for a later time. This is chiefly about nationalistic pride as a barrier to peace. My friend had a hard time understanding how I could not favor any particular country, which has roots in my knowledge about the future government of all mankind. I am going to edit my responses so that the format better fits this blog. This will be rather long, so I will try to organize it into multiple posts.

A question arose out of the discussion. Was it right for us to use nuclear weapons on Japan? Would I make the same decisions as everyone else in the military?

I cannot say that using nukes was the right decision, even if more conventional bombings and an invasion would have cost more lives on both sides. Looking at our near destruction from the Cold War, it may have been better if nuclear weapons were not developed at all. Yet there is no guarantee that they would not be developed later in history, so I do not know what the best decision would have been. I may have made the same mistakes as others, but there is no way to tell for sure. Our view of history is biased, and it is hard to always judge how different the results could be if different actions were taken.

Even if I did decide to bomb Japan, that does not mean the same results would be created. For instance, if the bombings were scheduled for a different day, it is likely that Kokura would have been bombed instead of Hiroshima or Nagasaki, since Kokura was the secondary target on August 6th and the primary target on August 9th. Only God knows how history would unfold if such circumstances changed. One possible solution would be to demonstrate the weapon in a more peaceful means, but I do not know all of the details as I wasn't there.

I believe things need to be put in perspective when you mentioned the 2,386 who died at Pearl Harbor. That's not much compared to the 150,000 - 246,000 who died from the nukes. And that number is little compared to the millions of Russians who died in the war (over 20 million I believe). Do Americans think about the sacrifice the Soviet Union made during the war? Do we honor their dead every year? Until people care about the lives of everyone, this planet will stay divided. Peace will remain a distant dream if societies do not possess the love or intent necessary to bring about its creation.

As I have stated before, I do not love this country any more than any other country (although geography is a different story). I try to love all peoples equally. We will not always have separate nations. There cannot be everlasting peace when humans are separated by imaginary borders. No matter how much you love a nation or those who serve it, it will not last forever. Though it may not be in our lifetime, this world will be organized under one government that exists to serve all people.

Throughout history, and even in the present, people have sought self-governance – independence. The US has gone through the same experience. It is not fun being controlled by a foreign power that does not respect your interests or rights. Self-governance is socially sustainable, but only if each community is in cooperation with all other communities.

When a community threatens another through military, economic, or social means, there is a lack of sustainability. Inefficiencies arise and chaos is introduced. War reduces the resources being used to serve the people, which are then used to do harm. Economic rivalry creates even more waste and over-consumption, and produces greater market volatility along with a (possibly global) tragedy of the commons. The rejection of other communities and their people creates fear, hatred and intolerance (among other complex social problems), which lead to economic disparity and violence. There has to be an overarching government that facilitates the healthy coordination and cooperation between all people, and this will only occur when humans can truly love their neighbors as themselves.

But this grand solution of love has never really been tried in a large community. Humans normally prefer a known evil over an unknown good, and the main cause is fear.