It would be of psychological interest at least to collect all the arguments and opinions that have been put forth about the good and evil of war. There is a tendency for moralists to go to extremes. The writers on war are likely to be either ardent pacifists or strong militarists. They do not try to strike a balance between good and evil, but war is either a great blessing upon mankind or the greatest curse of the ages. In general they do not seek to base their conclusions upon ultimate philosophical principles, but rather upon moral or biological principles, or, again, upon preferences for the activities of war or the arts of peace. How very different the good and evil of war and peace may seem from different points of view is well shown by the following excerpt from a daily newspaper:
THIS IS THE WAY GERMANY TALKS | THIS IS WHAT THE SCOUT TO YOUNG BOYS OF SCOUT AGE | ORGANIZATION TEACHES AMERICAN | BOYS | | From the "Handbook for Boys," | 17th edition, page 454. | "War is the noblest and | "The movement is one for holiest expression of human | efficiency and patriotism. It activity. For us, too, the | does not try to make soldiers glad great hour of battle | of boy scouts, but to make will strike. Still and deep | boys who will turn out as men in the German heart must live | to be fine citizens, and who the joy of battle and the | will if their country needs longing for it. Let us | them make better soldiers for ridicule to the utmost the | having been scouts. No one old women in breeches who | can be a good American unless fear war and deplore it as | he is a good citizen, and cruel and revolting. No; war | every boy ought to train is beautiful. Its august | himself so that as a man he sublimity elevates the human | will be able to do his full heart beyond the earthly and | duty to the community. I want the common. In the cloud | to see the boy scouts not palace above sit the heroes, | merely utter fine sentiments, Frederick the Great and | but act on them, not merely Blucher and all the men of | sing 'My Country, 'Tis of action--the Great Emperor, | Thee,' but act in a way that Moltke, Roon, Bismarck are | will give them a country to there as well, but not the | be proud of. No man is a good old women who would take away | citizen unless he so acts as our joy in war. When here on | to show that he actually uses earth a battle is won by | the Ten Commandments, and German arms and the faithful | translates the Golden Rule dead ascend to Heaven, a | into his life conduct--and I Potsdam lance corporal will | don't mean by this call the guard to the door | exceptional cases under and 'Old Fritz' (Frederick | spectacular circumstances, the Great), springing from | but I mean applying the Ten his golden throne, will give | Commandments and the Golden the command to present arms. | Rule in the ordinary affairs That is the Heaven of Young | of everyday life. I hope the Germany. | boy scouts will practice | truth and square dealing and "Because only in war all the | courage and honesty, so that virtues which militarism | when as young men they begin regards highly are given a | taking a part not only in chance to unfold, because | earning their own livelihood, only in war the truly heroic | but in governing the comes into play, for the | community, they may be able realization of which on earth | to show in practical fashion militarism is above all | their insistence upon the concerned; therefore, it | great truth that the eighth seems to us who are filled | and ninth commandments are with the spirit of militarism | directly related to everyday that war is a holy thing, the | life, not only between men as holiest on earth, and this | such in their private high estimate of war in its | relations, but between men turn makes an essential | and the government of which ingredient of the military | they are a part. Indeed, the spirit. There is nothing that | boys, even while only boys, trades-people complain of so | can have a very real effect much as that we regard it as | upon the conduct of the holy." | grown-up members of the | community, for decency and | square dealing are just as | contagious as vice and | corruption."