Thoughts Of.. War.
Everyone tends to ask me, "What do you like about America? Is it better than Russia? What's different here?"
Well the first question, I haven't really answered for myself. I suppose I enjoy the big stores. Other than that, its never much different. I always deny the fact that it's "better" than Russia: Simply because I beleive that every country is good in its own way. Plus there's not much difference between these two countries, for me there weren't, anyway.
"What's different here?" a fellow student or adult would ask. I always had to think about it. But here is something I realized a while later...
Kids in America, or at least a good handful of them, are very patriotic and there is nothing wrong with that. I am patriotic to my own country because I was born there, and I can't change that. I'm somewhat patriotic to here because I was raised here. Yet something I always found appalling is how the kids, since middle school, as far as I know, like to say "America is going to beat them all! We're gonna go to war and blow this country up!"
Yes, appalled is quite the word. I have never heard anything like it in Russia, though I may have been around the wrong people.. Regardless, this... strong feeling towards warfare just kind of confused and scared me. "We're gonna blow this country up." Don't you know there are people there?
For some odd reason, people always assume that if a country has a bad government or is small, all of the people in it MUST be exactly like that. Which, I think is total bull and here is why: I am one of the people from another country.
Everyone thinks that Russia is still communist, and communism is just soo bad, when in reality, it just isn't well planned. And Russians didn't realize that until later. And while I am on this note, yes, we have gone to war plenty as well, but not as much as America.
Statistics show that America spent about 209ish years out of the 235 that it existed in war. (If you want to see for yourself and/or count, check here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_military_operations I don't remember the perfect stats buut...) Now that is just ridiculous.
On people's Facebook walls, you say, "I love our troops for protecting us." Protecting you from what? The people the Government attacks and when they decide to get their noses in everything? I'll admit America suffered through tragedies as well. Yes, of course, the infamous 9/11 incident that is so close to everyone's heart. It was a very tragic day. But in war, every day is just as tragic. I heard people say, "Blowing people up is funny!", or "I would want to kill people because it's fun!" now that is just some strange type of sadism that I'm sure all Americans don't have. All countries have their sadists, of course, sadists like Hitler and such. But these people actually think they do good by wanting to kill innocent people.
Soliders are, as long as they have not killed anyone, innocent. They are citizens as well, with love for their country just like you. People have more in common with each other over the border lines than you think.
So why fight them all? Why make yourself out to be the bully? One may think it is all for a good cause, but people die.
I know this isn't going to change everyone's mind on war, but... You wanted to know what was different.
Even if I don't change your minds, I want you to read this and at least think for a moment, "Where are we going?" "Why?" "What is this accomplishing?"
Just remember, that soliders are people, too. And every time there is a war, they go out there, and a lot of hem die.
Remember, that other countries have people just like you.
The next time you talk about blowing a country up, imagine it being your own. And see how you feel then.
If this offends someone, I apologize. But don't feel obligated to tell me that it does. I'll ignore your christianity rants, and you can walk away from my war rants.
"Besides ending faschism, communism, and slavery, war hasn't solved anything." a bumper sticker I once saw read. Well, first of all, when has war ended communism? And second of all, yes. Some of these wars were neccessary. But I don't think the Civil War and World War II lasted for 209 years.
Don't be an asshole. Don't suppport the deaths of people. They're just like you.
No different.
All in the same.
Humans.
-if I have facts wrong feel free to correct me-