War
Bombs exploding, shots firing, cries of wounded soldiers, and the screams of scattering men and women are heard more often than not for many people serving the United States. These men and women are the patriots of our country. Many have chosen this destiny of fighting and putting their lives in danger to fight for the freedom of their country and the freedom for others. A selfless act such as this deserves great recognition. War is not a pleasant thing, not a pleasant place to be, not a pleasant thing to hear about and not a pleasant time in many people’s lives. It affects more people than just the people that are at war, the families and friends suffer also. Now stop and think how you would feel to be shot at daily, live on little to nasty food, not be able to shower, brush your teeth, and have little contact to home. How would you feel?
As said in dictionary.com war used as a noun is defined as: A conflict carried on by force of arms, as between nations or between parties within a nation; warfare, as by land, sea, or air. Used as a verb war is defined as: to make or carry on war; fight: to war with a neighboring nation. For me the definition of war is different. War is a conflict between two parties solved by a long term of violence until one party overpowers and the other surrenders. My definition may be different from the dictionary but it means the same, my definition is more graphic and explains more of the truth. With the act of war land has been won, religious conflicts have been solved; rights have been won, but with the good come the bad. Many lives have been lost and families have been separated for a good outcome.
Life has great meaning to me and to hear the word war most of the time isn’t a good thing. Hearing about war on the news is never a good thing, it’s always about hostages or bombing or our soldiers hitting a road side bomb. It’s rarely ever a good thing on the news to hear about the war in Iraq right now.
The feeling of the word would be dreadful. It would be full of pain and suffering. There would be some pride and strength in there also. War would make you feel sick to your stomach, with all the hurt and the devastation of the many people that are involved in the war. Also with the many people that are just surrounded by the war because of where they live. Innocent lives are affected by the war surrounding them. Their country is not structured and it creates a horrible life for these people.
Looking at how the war would be like, to be there in the action, would not be fun. I can imagine the yelling and the gun shots constantly. There would be unbearable circumstances that you would have to deal with. No complaining about the living conditions or what you get to eat or how far from home you are. I think you would have comfort with the men and women around you because they are in the same boat that you are in, with not seeing family and in a way they would become part of your family.
For me, I have a history with people close to me in the war myself. The battle of my parents has been quite the war so to speak. Fighting over who gets to take me which weekend gave me a first hand experience on how fighting can solve some things and make others worse. On the other hand many of my family members and friends have fought in wars or have been in the service. My grandpa fought in Vietnam and is still affected now from it. His experience has not been forgotten in his mind nor has it faded. The pain has eased but it still troubles him greatly. My cousin was in desert storm and when returned home had nightmares constantly.
War has been around for centuries. The Greeks and Romans had battles and it still is going on today. All major conflicts usually end up being solved by battle or war. Nations are always going to disagree on simple to great things; this means there will always be fighting. I believe that this is a good and a bad thing. It’s good because things are solved and we can move on from the problem, but it’s bad because many people die and our loved ones are taken from us for long periods of time. This causes stress and anguish among many people. In ancient history these battles were fought differently and there were different techniques. The soldiers had shields and swords and there were horses. They staged the battle face to face, one side running towards the other. I believe is an honest way to fight a war.
Currently, in our war that we are fighting, the soldiers have high powered guns and ammo. There are tanks, road side bombs, mortar men, a front line and all kinds of sneaking around. Now I can’t say for sure about all this because I truly don’t know unless I see it first hand right in the action. We certainly have improved our fighting skills and improved our technology for weapons and tanks. There are so many things that have improved the lives of soldiers through the years and give them opportunity to work around the clock. Since the current election we have two thousand seven hundred and ninety nine casualties in Iraq, comparing to the four thousand two hundred thirty seven that we had in the beginning.
There is war all around us, in our lives, near our home, it’s everywhere. For me in my life I can compare it to my parents fighting. A divorce is a great way to create a battle between two people that are headstrong. When it comes down to it we all have to stop and think about what we have and how greatful we are for it. As Americans we have rights and that in itself is a great gift to have. Remember that not everyone has food to eat everyday and not everyone has a home. Take the time to say thank you for the things you have and know that it isn’t as bad as you think it is.
