END OF THE AGE OF WAR
War is Now Obsolete
HUMAN history appears to be a long story of wars, one after another. Prior to the 20th century, war might have been regarded as a necessity of the times. But from the 20th century onwards, following a veritable revolution in human affairs, war has become totally unnecessary. War has now become a complete anachronism. All that for the sake of which in the past people would go to war can now be obtained without war, and in a much better way. Compared to the violent means that were used in ancient times, modern, peaceful means are much more effective and result-oriented.
Why did so many wars happen in ancient times? The reason for this was ambitious people could not see before them any way other than waging war against others to obtain their objectives. They went to war because it seemed to them that they had no alternative to war in order to secure their goals.
In ancient times there were two things in particular that made war seem necessary and unavoidable for those who chose to go to war. The first of these was family-based monarchical rule. The second was the agriculture-based or land-based economy. In ancient times, monarchy based on family rule carried on for centuries. In line with this system, for a politically-ambitious person to satisfy his desire for political power the only way that seemed possible was to kill the ruling monarch or to depose him and to capture his throne and then put himself in his place. In this way, one family succeeded another as monarchs, in a chain that extended over many thousands of years.
Because of Industrial Revolution, today innumerable new economic means and opportunities have become available, utilizing which a person can make great economic progress.
In the modern age, major revolutions took place because of which family-based monarchical rule came to an end and across the world a system of democratic governance was established, at least in theory. Political rulers now began being chosen through periodic elections. In this way, every person now got the opportunity to obtain an outlet for his political ambitions. For everyone it now became possible that, using peaceful means, they could obtain a position of political power, for a limited term.
Another very significant change occurred in the economic sphere. For thousands of years, almost the entire economy was dependent on agriculture. In other words, it was a land-based economy. Those who owned land were considered wealthy and powerful, while those who were landless were considered poor and powerless. Further, under the ancient political system, the monarch and those whom he had granted land-grants to were considered to be the actual owners of the land.
In such a situation, for a person with great economic ambitions, there seemed to be only one way to satisfy his desires—and that was to fight with the owners of the land and grab their land. In this regard a person who had no land had just two choices—either to remain content with being landless or to fight against the owners of the land and try to grab their land.
In the modern age, a major development completely transformed this situation, and that is what is called the Industrial Revolution. Because of this revolution, today innumerable new economic means and opportunities have become available, utilizing which a person can make great economic progress. Even without becoming a landowner he can become economically wealthy.
The world has come to realize the inefficacy of war to obtain the desired objective. In this age, talking about war has become anachronistic and obsolete. This is an age of peace.
This change is so massive and significant that it can, without any exaggeration, be called an ‘economic explosion’. It has completely transformed the entire political and economic scenario. Things that earlier seemed impossible have now become completely possible. Things that earlier appeared merely imaginary have now become a practical reality. The age of political and economic monopoly has come to a complete and final end.
After this revolutionary change, there is now no excuse left for anyone to go to war. A person or group or country can now obtain their economic or political objectives by availing of the vastly expanded opportunities that have now been made possible, using peaceful means alone. In such a situation, there is no need for war at all. War and violence would now only indicate a complete lack of awareness of the ample possibilities that are today available for obtaining one’s objectives using peaceful means alone. Today, war has been rendered utterly ineffective and useless in terms of producing any positive results.
The recent standoff between the US and Iran in the wake of the US strike on Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani offers a great lesson. In both countries, the sentiments of the public flared to wreak vengeance on each other. A destructive war seemed inevitable. It was at this most critical juncture that better sense prevailed on both sides. Knowing full well the calamitous consequences of modern-day war, the Heads of both countries unequivocally declared that they do not want to wage war. The US President said, “The fact that we have this great military and equipment… does not mean we have to use it. We do not want to use it.” (TIME January 20, 2020) This episode is ample proof that the age of war is over. The world has come to realize the inefficacy of war to obtain the desired objective. In this age, talking about war has become anachronistic and obsolete. This is an age of peace. Let’s embark on our journey to spread the message of peace. Through peaceful movements, every objective can be attained.