Lynn Classical High School - Classical Yearbook (Lynn, MA)

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Ofbinnifng Qapcr in the ghzgefuf Zimfntafn memoriaf Ganicoff The Appalling Cost of War Rodney White Since the world's victory over the forces of tyranny and oppression, we have settled back and begun readjusting ourselves to our prewar modes of life. But at what cost have we earned this peace? We are now in a position to con- template what this war has cost the world. Yet, no matter how deeply nor how intelligently we consider this question, it is virtually impossible for us to real- ize the toll that War takes on humanity. For war is more terrible than the words of man can comprehend. Most of us are familiar with the materialistic aspects of warg but in ad- dition, we must also cogitate about the moral and spiritual losses, the economic loss, and the effects of war on men in the armed forces and civilians as well. Of these four results of modern warfare, the latter is by far the most important. A To begin with, the monetary cost of war is tremendous. Surveys have shown that the cost of the entire war for each of the leading nations engaged has exceeded millions of dollars. Thus, we surmise that all of these nations have gigantic war debts and are, therefore, economically unsound. By the war recently over, civilization has been greatly retarded. All technically trained personnel has been engaged doing vital war research in view of peacetime experimentsg yet there has been an extreme scarcity of ci- vilian items, such as shoes, clothing, and food. Terrible havoc and devastation is the inevitable outcome of modern warfare today. Entire cities have been de- molished taking with them the toll of innocent civilian lives, in addition whole countrysides have been leveled beyond compare. Now that the threat to democracy has been lifted, we, in America, again hear the tinkling sound of children's laughter and see the joyous smiles on ev- eryone's facesg however, in far too many European and Asiatic countries, this situation does not hold true. Millions of people are homelessg destitute, without families, they lack food, clothing, and shelterg they are merely gaunt, hollow- eyed people scarcely surviving, not knowing where their next meal is coming from, nor which way to turn. These people are the products of our total war! The most depressing phase of war is that thousands of youths have been either killed or permanently maimed, thus depriving them of their fundament- al right: the right to live a Wholesome life. For example, Germany has had four million persons killed or permanently incapacitated, with an additional four million woundedg other nations, although not sustaining such high losses, have also suffered greatly. Still another accompanying loss of war is a lowering of our moral and spiritual codes, a returning to virtual barbarism. Horrible atrocities were a common place occurence in the second world war. Men actually turned into human beasts as pictures and eye witnessed accounts of prison camps through- out Europe and Japan Will testify. lOne of the worse aspects of 'war is man kill- ing his fellow man like the barbarians of yesteryear. Back as far as the eight- eenth century, Shakespeare in his play As You Like It, wrote a quotation which holds true even today. Men have died from time to time and worms have eaten them, but not for love. . sixteen

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If America as a nation is to work for peace, we must be unyielding in our morals and idealsg but we must compromise on many questions of a materialis- tic nature even as our Lord sacrificed his life for the benefit of humanity. As a nation we are strong, and therefore ,we must take the leadership in seeing that all wars are forever abolished. Our leaders, and the other statesmen of the world have already taken a step in this direction, and in so doing, they have helped form the United Na- tions, an organization which they hope will be the basis of a permanent peace. Although they have undertaken this task, they will not be able to achieve their object unless they have the support of their various fellow countrymen. And this support they must have, for in the unity of the nations of the world we will find the necessary strength to force recalcitrant powers into a peaceful mode of life. ' However, our weapons in this struggle must not be implements of war, but rather those synonomous with peace and love. We must subdue our lusts for greed and power, and advance our cultural and social ideals. We must learn to live with our neighbor. We must study his character and his habitsg and thus we will be able to analyze his way of thinking. With this necessary information we will be able to guide our course and conform. somewhat to his ideas. In this spirit of cooperation, lies our chance of promoting harmony rather than foment- ing that discord which has prevailed among the nations of the earth through the ages. We must also endeavor to educate our youth on the problems so essential and so necessary if we are to obtain this lasting peace, for it will be to the hands of youth that the great responsibility of securing and holding world harmony will be entrusted. In the homes, in the schools, and in the churches, youth must be taught by example to lo've their neighborg and thus they will be more basic- ally assured of the life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness with which they have been endowed from birth. In the homes, they must be taught to honor and obey their elders. The schools must further advance this training, giving pupils the knowledge and ideals that will make them clean and upright citizens. In the churches, youth must be taught the philosophies and laws set down by God. Thus, from these three sources, they will receive the essential training needed for the good man who desires to make friends and not enemies. This future man must be superior in his ideals, his morals, and his inferencesg and he must lack those evil traits which have been so predominate in the hearts of those who have preceded him. With such a man of higher ideals and morals, the task of reconciling the differ- ences between races and creeds will not be so impossible as it now seems. But this ideal relationship cannot be realized in the short span of one life. It will take many years of planning, sparked by the firmest determination. We must remember as we approach this problem of lasting peace that our basic task is to promote harmony with our neighbor, a harmony which can be obtained only by making a thorough but sympathetic study of his character, his ideals, and his modes of life. If we do not learn to live with our brethren, if we do not compromise on certain ideas, the results for humanity will be disastrousg for all previous indi- cations point to the destruction of the world in the struggle of nation against na- tion. So let us take up this task of conciliation, but let us remember that the fu- ture of posterity depends on what we are able to accomplish today in securing a basis for permanent peace. fifteen

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Although the forementioned los ses of war seem devastating and dismay- ing, the effect produced on both soldiers and civilians by it, is of the greatest im- port. It is impossible for us to realize what living in the midst of battle does to one. We have all heard the term battle fatigue, however, how many of us un- derstand its true meaning. The generally mistaken conception of it, is that it refers to a person who has suffered a nervous breakdown or collapsed under the strain of battle. By letting the fatigued soldier recuperate fully at some rest cen- ter, most people believe that he will now be entirely cured. But battle fatigue leaves conditional reflexes and behavior patterns long afterwards. A great deal of time is required by the average soldier to readjust himself. Often the soldier comes home with a different personality and an ensuing divorce or breaking of engagements occurs. Many soldiers fear the return to civilian life, especially those permanent- ly maimed, who face the possibility of ruined lives, pity, and failure. Upon re- turning to civilian life, one prominent lawyer made a statement which reflects the sentiments of many veterans. What can I do now? I can't go back to petty things. In far too many cases the veteran does not entirely recover from the shock of battle and leads a semi-bewildered existence for the rest of his life. Because of these effects of war, the next generation will have a poor health history. Most of the fathers of our progeny will be veterans who have endured the rigors of battle. Some are incapacitated permanently, some are still suffering slightly from battle shock, while others have recovered completely. Most of those who cannot be classified in these categories were deferred because of their poor health. This hereditary imperfection of health can be dangerous, for, although there are exceptions, the consensus of opinion of many leading psychiatrists is that a deficient health history is somewhat like an imperfect mental history. During our readjustment to our prewar modes of living, we face a grave danger, the danger of transferring the great hatred we created for the enemy to something or someone not deserving this treatment. Although the war is now over, the pressure of the enmity we developed for the axis powers is still pres- ent. The shift of this animosity to Jews or Negroes is a distinct possibility and one which we must watch for and safeguard against. Also, a flare up may occur between Catholics and Protestantsg or we may begin to resent Germany or Rus- sia. After every war, bigotry is renewed with vigor, while hate-m.ongering socie- ties such as the Ku Klux Klan have a rebirth. After the first world war was over, instead of setting an example to the other nations of the world, America adopted a hands-off policy. The United States had a great ocean between her and Europeg what did she have to fear? Let Europe go its way, and we would go ours, we thought. Therefore, we did not enter the league of nations, which from that time, henceforth, gradually weakened, until it eventually amounted to a name only. When Italy declared war on Ethiopia, the league was helpless while the United States also paid no attention. This war was, indeed, costly, for as it was later shown, it was the prov- ing ground of the axis powers for World War Two. Thus by our mistake, and that of the member nations of the league, the world was again thrown into con- flict, the cost of which was very, very dear. Profiting by their previous mistakes, the allied nations have established the United Nations Assembly as a measure for building lasting peace. We must never again become an isolationist nation, but instead should serve as an exam- ple for others, in a cooperative policy. Already, however, internal strife is breaking out between England and the United States on one hand, and Russia on the other. Let all the nations forget their differences and again may friendly relations prevail. When and if the next war, the atomic war, occurs, civilization is liable to be destroyed, lest atomic energy and its awful powers necessitate prolonged harmony between nations. We must, we can, and we shall build lasting peace. seventeen