| WJS, I basically am in total agreement about the Japanese and Chinese people both being victims in WWII. The Japanese bear some responsibility for allowing their leaders to bring them to such a tragic state, but for average people the responsibility was not great and the suffering was terrible, just as it was in the countries that they victimized. But I'm afraid you can't generalize that to all war, otherwise war wouldn't exist. In some wars, one of the parties benefits. Look at Britain in the opium wars, or the U.S. in the Mexican war, both of which were imperialist wars in which the victor benefited at the expense of the loser. But it's true that if you look at any likely wars in the near future - India/Pakistan, China/Taiwan, Korea, there will only be losers. I certainly don't see any winners in Iraq. This is a good conversation and you're providing a valuable service by hosting it. Regarding Japan, I don't see any contradiction in remembering what Japan did in the past and abhorring those actions, and working with and befriending modern Japanese. No nation or people is without guilt. |
Some Thoughts about War and History