3_flores_victor

Victor Flores

Hispanic Center of Excellence

Ethics of War and Peace

Benjamin Franklin was a creative inventor and an established diplomat who had seen the horrors of war. He was directly involved in the United States Revolutionary war and diplomat to France as it was going through a revolution of its own. Both experiences had given him unique insights on war and peace. Franklin once said, "There was never a good war or a bad peace." His statement gives the reader the impression that wars could never be considered good or just, and times of peace should not be considered bad.

The statement Franklin uses to address his point should be seen as an oxymoron. War, with all its violence and loss of life, is something that people should never consider to be good. Few motives are ever righteous enough to cause human beings to kill or imprison each other. Peace between two disagreeing factions should be seen as a blessing rather than a burden. In times of peace, people carry on with their lives without the fear of death war always brings with it. People who can resolve their problems in a peaceful way should be applauded, not ridiculed.

There are times where desperate situations call for desperate measures. A form of peace could come under the rule of an evil dictatorship. There would be a semblance of peace and order maintained under this government, but it would be enforced with terror instead of goodness. Citizens would cower in fear under the eyes of oppressive government because they could not be free. Freedom from this scenario is cause enough for a nation to stand against the tyranny. If war becomes the only way to resolve the issue, the need for violence would be considered justified and necessary. In order to end generations of suffering, people must be willing to endure the suffering war brings with it.

In modern times, war is the quick and easy answer to resolving conflicts between nations. Governments act as children who do not get what they want and throw temper tantrums to get their way. People fail themselves when they cannot resolve their problems by peaceful means. War means violence and death on a tremendous scale. Chinese general Shen Tzu, commenting on the most important concept of war, said, "Death is irreversible." Peace brings about happiness and an era for people to grow and learn. War is the inverse of the peaceful equation. It only brings misery and the grimacing specter of death as its reward.









			Victor Flores Hispanic Center of Excellence Ethics of War and Peace Benjamin Franklin was a creative inventor and an established diplomat who had seen the horrors of war. He was directly involved in the United States Revolutionary war and diplomat to France as it was going through a revolution of its own. Both experiences had given him unique insights on war and peace. Franklin once said, "There was never a good war or a bad peace." His statement gives the reader the impression that wars could never be considered good or just, and times of peace should not be considered bad. The statement Franklin uses to address his point should be seen as an oxymoron. War, with all its violence and loss of life, is something that people should never consider to be good. Few motives are ever righteous enough to cause human beings to kill or imprison each other. Peace between two disagreeing factions should be seen as a blessing rather than a burden. In times of peace, people carry on with their lives without the fear of death war always brings with it. People who can resolve their problems in a peaceful way should be applauded, not ridiculed. There are times where desperate situations call for desperate measures. A form of peace could come under the rule of an evil dictatorship. There would be a semblance of peace and order maintained under this government, but it would be enforced with terror instead of goodness. Citizens would cower in fear under the eyes of oppressive government because they could not be free. Freedom from this scenario is cause enough for a nation to stand against the tyranny. If war becomes the only way to resolve the issue, the need for violence would be considered justified and necessary. In order to end generations of suffering, people must be willing to endure the suffering war brings with it. In modern times, war is the quick and easy answer to resolving conflicts between nations. Governments act as children who do not get what they want and throw temper tantrums to get their way. People fail themselves when they cannot resolve their problems by peaceful means. War means violence and death on a tremendous scale. Chinese general Shen Tzu, commenting on the most important concept of war, said, "Death is irreversible." Peace brings about happiness and an era for people to grow and learn. War is the inverse of the peaceful equation. It only brings misery and the grimacing specter of death as its reward.