I don't know how I did it...

Some how, over the last few months I lost two dress sizes. I was a size 14 in December. Now I am a size 12. This explains why stuff has been almost falling off me. Today, I bought myself some more scarves. I bought two pairs of shorts. (It doesn't make sense to call them 'pairs' when they are single items. Our language is weird at times.) I also have a new blouse.

[...]

My random clicking and reading things on the internet brought me to the wikipedia entry about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I read the entire thing. I've spoken with veterans of World War II. One of them is my great-uncle Gene. These people are not people who take life or death lightly. I have, when I had the opportunity, asked them about their thoughts about this event.

An overwhelming number of them still stand in support of it. They are utterly convinced that it was correct to have used that weapon. Some of them even said that we should use it in Afghanistan. These are not blood thirsty monsters but rather people who have seen and had to do horrific things. Taking another man's life is not something to be done casually.

I must admit, I do not think the atomic bomb should have ever been invented. I do not think it should have ever been used. I feel the same way about biological warfare. I feel the same way about chemical warfare. I feel the same way about carpet bombing. I feel the same way about asymmetrical warfare (aka urban warfare aka terrorism).

War is a blight upon the Earth. It is among the greatest crimes that man can commit against the world. There is little difference, in my eyes, between war and genocide. Does this mean that we should be pacifists? If someone were to invade my home, should I not use deadly force to protect myself and my family? No. The use of deadly force when it is necessary is appropriate. We have the right to defend ourselves.

If this world were more just, war would not happen. The only time a fist was raised would be to defend oneself. Disagreements between nations would be settled by negotiation rather then arms. That is my dream. That humanity could live in peace with itself and the world, taking only what was needed and working to preserve the rest.

Sadly, however, war happens. Humans are terribly clever. We like to find ways to improve our skills in various areas and to be more efficient in our activities. This has even extended to how to kill. We have not only learned how to kill more effectively but also how to do it with less concern for the moral and ethical questions involved. People have been increasingly dehumanized. This makes the jump from 'person' to 'enemy combatant' to statistic easier. This makes the process of war more efficient.

It is something that I am deeply ashamed of. And my soul weeps for the civilians who are killed for the crime of being alive and native to the wrong country. I grieve the dead who were counted as 'acceptable losses' and robbed of their humanity. I question sometimes if any one else does so? Some one must remember them, lest we completely descend into monstrosity.