Desensitization Of War

Decent Essays
Secondly, in a scenario where declaring war can be conceivable political leaders have an obligation to convince the public why proclaiming war is essential and warrants jeopardizing lives of soldiers. Eventually lethal autonomous robotic weapons will eliminate the need for living warriors on the theater of war. In time, eliminating casualties of war and thus public attitude concerning use of force may possibly depreciate. Therefore leaving the deliberation of war almost exclusively to a diplomatic or fiscal perspective. Excluding the critical claim of why endangering the wellbeing of American military personnel is dynamic to the welfare of the nation. Subsequently, desensitizing the public to war allows a genuine possibility for normalizing

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The United States has come a long way since the days of the American Revolution or either of the World Wars. Today war is all about airstrikes, drones, and the use of any other new technology in order to find a way to keep our troops at home and fighting conflicts without having “boots on the ground” as the saying goes. However even with, or perhaps because of, this new technology our country finds itself involved in conflicts that are unconventional to what we have seen in our history. The young generation of Americans today has grown up learning about the wars against terrorism where the enemy is hard to really signal out from a large crowd. We have become accustomed to fighting against what Max Boot calls “invisible armies” because it’s…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In his book, After the Rubicon: Congress, Presidents, and the Politics of Waging War, author Douglas Kriner delves into the murky concept of congressional influence in the arena of the United States’ increasingly executive-driven military engagements. Kriner analyzes the ways, both formal and informal, that Congress exercises affect over presidential actions in the international sphere. The publication addresses the regularity with which Congress seeks to influence presidential conduct of major military affairs by engaging in the policymaking process. Additionally, Kriner parses the significance of congressional influence to military action when opposition arises from the president’s party as well as the role of influence when the opposition party supports the president in the middle of an inherited war. Kriner accepts the expansion of executive power since the imperialistic eras of Johnson and Nixon as a given, however, his book aims to illuminate the ways in which Congress shapes the decisions made by the commander-in-chief even when lacking legal recourse to…

    • 1251 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Americans have been fascinated with the concept of war for centuries. War has evolved from a last resort into an opportunity for America to prove its superiority against other countries, and to instill fear within the nation. In short, war is a grandiose weapon. In the novel, The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Seduced by War, Andrew J. Bacevich discusses the relationship that has existed and continues to exist between America and war. Although Bacevich is able to pinpoint a plethora of explanations as to how militarism has evolved into what it is now, he does not present a clear thesis.…

    • 1051 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    War is a two faced devil, it is justified killing that is latter praised in winning. It has reason for being set into motion that may seem to be logical to certain parties, and to others it may seem like an emotional weight pulling them down under the water 's surface of the frontlines. Pulling them down along side those who are backing up the war with one rash reasoning, a group of suits who have made decisions for war and nearly all of them have never stepped a foot onto those frontlines that they are so willing to put men and women on to fight for them. Men and woman who might not all agree with the reasoning behind the fight in the first place, and one war that caught light on not having everyone agreeing, yet still being forced onto the…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Lindbergh Neutrality

    • 704 Words
    • 3 Pages

    It is the year 1939, and political turmoil is at its height. President Roosevelt has summoned both isolationist and interventionist political parties to a meeting that will be imperative is our country’s well-being. This will be P. Roosevelt’s final attempt to convince congress to amend the neutrality acts, the only thing preventing the United States from intervening itself in the impending war in Europe. Senator Borah is dismayed, stating that there “is no war in Europe” and that “all the hysteria is manufactured and artificial” thus stating that there is nothing to worry about and that there is no viable reason to repeal the neutrality acts. At the time, a compelling amount of citizens is in agreement with the senator, including the influential,…

    • 704 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “War does not determine who is right- only who is left,” is a quote by Bertrand Russell. This spectrum expresses the casualties of war. In other words, Russell means war is used as an outlet to define a “winner”, or in this case, someone who is right. The veiled truth is that there are no true winners of war when comparing the damage created and the lives lost. Looking at war through that perspective, John F. Kennedy, among others, also agreed.…

    • 1616 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Randolph Bourne, “War is the Health of the State,” 1918 In this document, Bourne, a Progressive author, addresses American citizens in an essay on the effects of war. Although many of Bourne’s fellow Progressives embraced war as a way to speed up the advancement of their socialist causes, Bourne rejected this opinion, insisting although war may seem to strength a nation through the renewal of nationalistic ties and improvement of the popular image of government, involvement in a war becomes a negative influence on a nation morally and may harm its citizens. Specifically, Bourne speaks out against the stirring of false patriotism and the loss of values leading to infringement of the right of freedom of speech. Through war, Bourne argues, the State suddenly acquires greater power and undue control of individuals.…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    A civilian once bombarded me with question over my war experience. As days began to drift by with no immediate end, I rebutted with a question. “When I say war, what do you think about?” He was hesitant, but he responded: Soldiers, enemy combatants, ships, tanks, Humvees, helicopters, jets, weapons, chemical weapons, the atom bomb, and death. I smiled, as if to say, that’s it.…

    • 3885 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    War has always been a controversial issue in the United States. For a war to get public approval, the government has to successfully justify the war and lay out a clear plan for its quick and honorable end. Most wars have been justified as being for the defense of the United States or its interests. Prior to and including World War II, if the President decided that war was needed, he would ask Congress for an official declaration of war. This process is enumerated in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.…

    • 2226 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Many Reactions to War The characters of “The Return of the Soldier” and “Pale Horse, Pale Rider” waver from wanting to acknowledge the war and its effects to wanting to erase all traces of the war. Within both novellas there are characters who want the war to go on so that it can run its course, and there are characters who just want the war to end so that their loved ones might be safe. With the war being so prevalent in everyone’s daily lives, there is also the feeling of needing to contribute to the war effort, or at least keep up appearances, however unwelcome it may be. A transition exists, from characters believing that the war will run its course to the realization that there may be no future outside of the war in its effects for…

    • 1473 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Lastly, when you watch a horror movie, of course you know that it’s not real. Though how can you help not feeling what those characters are feeling. Someone is being tortured, do you not feel sad for them and experience their fear? When a human being is mutilated, do you not feel the disgust and agony? Not only do these emotions have a traumatic effect on us but they begin to desensitize us.…

    • 232 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Under the Secretary of Defense’s guidance on Communication with Presidential Campaigns, military members “are prohibited from engaging with potential candidates and their authorized representatives on any matter related to their official duties under any circumstances.” As the 2016 Presidential Election is coming to a close, it has been evident that following this direction is of the utmost importance. There is an unwavering trust in military members and consequently, the possibility to influence civilian’s decisions in major political events that make up our democracy. Historically, there was a fear that the military could overpower and topple a government; but that fear has practically diminished today, even if the probability of it remains.…

    • 1533 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “Rationalist Explanations for War,” James Fearon argues that due to war’s costly nature and states’ risk-averse, or at least risk-neutral, tendencies, there should always exist some possible prewar agreement between two disputing states that both parties would prefer to achieve over committing to war. While seeking to reveal his main claim that war is caused by information problems, commitment problems, and issue indivisibilities, Fearon critiques five traditional Neorealist explanations of war: anarchy, positive expected utility, preventive war, lack of information, and miscalculation of relative power. Although Fearon’s critique of the majority of these theories are earnest and do expose multiple logical shortcomings, his rapid dismissal…

    • 1115 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “Sex and Death in the Rational World of Defense Intellectuals” by Carol Cohn shows importance due to its focus on how the makers of foreign policy view the world and how they can manipulate language to better suite their beliefs. Often, the author references the conversations she listens to and participates in as occurring in a different language. By this she means that the words that frequent their dialogues allow the speakers to not address the realities of the destruction that surrounds nuclear technology. The reader should know that this piece discusses the importance of understanding the terms that are used by defense intellectuals, and that it is an inherently sexualized topic due to the overwhelming masculinity present when referring…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    War; there is a lot of speculation about what it is actually good for. But what actually constitutes as a war? Is it the number of deaths? Above a threshold of 1,000, few doubt a war is going on. A threshold of 100 can be more divisive.…

    • 2164 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays