Hasan A. Yahya, Ph.Ds
What social aspects are parts of a war system and what aspects contribute to peace? Four concepts are the answers for these questions, they are: the idea of nationalism and patriotism, the military-industrial complex, the idea of domination (feeling of superiority) and cultural promotion in isolation.
Nationalism and Patriotism: In the past few centuries, the idea of nationalism was growing rapidly, Accompanied by popular feeling of patriotism. Being an Arab, or American, or Russian gives many people a sense of identity and meaning in human life. Many men become having intense feeling of being alive, important, and connected to others by becoming worriers to kill and die for their country. With advance technologies and weapon industry, wars became more destructive of civilian life since the 17th century. It became imperative for politicians (the elite)to persuade the public to participate in mass war and to endure the causalities and economic hardships of war mobilization. In his study titled: A Study of War, Quincy Wright”(1964,:pp. 51-52), concludes: “Since popular support became more necessary with the new technologies, the management of opinion became increasingly important. Development of the sentiment for war ….. National sovereignty defined by the new international law, became the prevailing value, the dominant sentiment, the political objective and the leading cause of war in the modern period.”Therefore, since the French revolution, the struggle of the merchant class, workers, and peasants was against the feudal aristocracy. The revolution created the French identity, the nation as a whole, as opposed to a high privileged elite. The struggle for “Liberty, equality, and justice” was connected to a sense of belonging to a national community, as opposed to international community. (WE and they). National pride emerged in almost all European nations but transformed into a sense of national superiority in relation to other countries and peoples. This sense of superiority was legitimized as doctrine to colonize other nations around the world. Nationalism became the rhetoric of imperialism, as a major theme justifying the struggle of one imperial state against another, manipulating nationalism and patriotism to divert people’s attention away from inequalities and injustices at home. Colonized people in return, using the slogan of nationalism and patriotism revolving against the colonization powers as a foreign domination. For example, American revolution against Britain, and post World War II independence movements and revolutionary wars in the Third World nations. By nature, nationalism as a belief system needs “enemy”. Unfortunately nation-states (Chinese, Egyptians, American, Russians, Japanese, British, German, etc.,) mirror each other in this respect which makes peace very difficult to achieve. Lack of love and mutual respect contribute to hatred and possibly war. Further more, nationalism is promoted in schools, with the morning pledge of allegiance, and with history books glorify the national and military heroes. Pop-cultures , movies, plays, songs, media and the press all follow steps and strengthen that feeling of nationalism. The slogan “our country” became inferior with Other countries, and should rank ahead of other countries. To cure this disease of nationalism, internationalism, one world, people of the earth, themes should be promoted.
The Military-Industrial Complex: This factor also is important in promoting wars, promoting science to produce military and industrial complex was supported and funded in almost all advanced nations to use and to market weapons to other countries as well. Making war became the goal of these military industries, because peace, destroy these industries, increase unemployment, and reduce enjoyment of life. The United States alone spent 01 billion dollars on defense from 1946 to 1981, and 89 billion from 1981 to 1988. The corporations that manufacture weapons, the university researchers who provide the scientific knowledge needed to make them, and the millions of workers who work for military contractors have strong reasons to support a foreign policy that emphasizes military force. Would these people work for military industrial complex be trained to do something else of civilian and social advantage? And how, the process may be managed and redirected. A new task and measurement for modern world to begin planning for it and implementing it, and evaluating its outcomes for the cause of humanity all over the planet.
