War and Inhumanities

Throughout history there has been many forms of inhumanity and brutal times of war. Post-war world left thousands of people dead, horribly injured, or left with shattered countries. War and violence seem to be an inevitable issue, but I believe that if we know what causes war than we, as humans, should take it upon ourselves to make sure wars no longer happen. Wars can be caused by many things, such as, alliances, military aggression, and imperialism. In many cases, alliances have been known to be the beginning or cause of many battles and wars. Alliances were formed by countries that vowed to help another country in case a war was to occur. For instance, Germany formed an alliance group with Austria-Hungary and Italy, called the Triple Alliance. The Triple Alliance was rivaled against the Triple Entente, an alliance between France, Britain, and Russia. Since these alliances were built upon signed treaties, if one country was in need of military assistance the partnering country in their alliance would have to help, which more times than not lead to bigger wars than if with no alliance. Instead of it just being a problem between two countries it would become a problem between many countries and that is one major cause that lead to world wars. One of the most known acts of military aggression today is Hitler’s’ Nazi Army invading several countries in Europe. Hitler reigned over Germany with his military forces from 1933-1945. In early 1939, Germany occupied and took control over Czechoslovakia, under the premise that German citizens were suffering ethnic suppression. This was a rouse that allowed Hitler to take his next step towards invading Poland. As Hitler continued invading and capturing countries he began a campaign of genocide, wiping out many people of Jewish religion and decent. His Nazi regime not only took away territory and land, but also took away the lives of millions of people in a horrific and brutal event known as the Holocaust. Another well-known act of military aggression was Japans attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. It began after the U.S. decided to stop supplying Japan with raw materials because of their aggression against China. This led to all out war between the U.S. and Japan over the next three and a half years. During the course of the war, scientists were working towards the development of the atomic bomb, which they believed would help end the war sooner. As the U.S. gained the upper hand in the conflict, they made plans to invade Japan, which was codenamed Operation Olympic. This operation called for the U.S. to invade the southern-most island of Japan. However, on August 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped its first atomic bomb on Hiroshima carried by a B29 Super Fortress named the Enola Gay. After the second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan finally surrendered, ending World War 2. There are many forms of imperialism, such as, the occupying or taking over of territory. Often the taking over of territory is not handled with gentleness, but with violence. Countries occupy territory for natural resources, to gain control, to set up military forces, etc. When there is someone, like Hitler, who wants to gain power and control, they start first with occupying and then the formation of dictatorships. Hitler used his military forces to help him invade, gain more forces, build up his power, than ultimately become the dictator of Germany. No war has ever started without any cause or mean. Now that we are educated with some causes of war, we can hopefully prevent them from happening in the future. Like stated before, war and violence may seem like an inevitable issue, but before we even try fixing that issue we must know what started it, such as, alliances, military forces, and imperialism. Although, alliances, military forces, and imperialism can be helpful, they can also be destructive.