War and its impact on culture

Quite a few wars have been fought in the recent days with the intention of bringing peace to the world. This is an undeniable paradox when we realize that there can only be one outcome from war – destruction. Countries are striking at each other in the name of “retribution” and contributing only one thing to the world – destruction. This destruction is rampant in the countries which are attacked on basis of personal motifs and false accusations. While there are a large number of human casualties from a war, there is also one more casualty which is often forgotten. It is the culture of the country being attacked.

Culture of any country of the world is a unique remainder of its life style, history, politics, social organization and values and morals in the society. Culture is not something that can be put together and destroyed within a lifetime. It is one which is cultivated over the ages. This is the main reason why preserving the remnants of culture and history is so important. Culture gives a country the chance to become a modernized nation, while staying connected with its past at all times.

A series of wars which have taken place in the world recently have destroyed the culture of the attack prone nations. Many people have lost their livelihood and become homeless. The standard of living in most of these countries in the post-war period has been deplorable. The ultimate loss suffered from these wars is the loss of the traditional life style of the people living in these countries. Hence, disruption in normal life has lead to destruction of standard living patterns in these countries, which in turn has lead to annihilation of their cultures.

After the 9/11 strike on the World Trade Towers by terrorists, the armed nations have achieved a motive to attack their defenseless adversaries on the explanation that they are fighting against terrorism. What followed was a series of wars, first against Afghanistan and then against Iraq. In a bid to flush out radical elements, the invading armies outrageously attacked the innocent people and murdered them ruthlessly. Many historic monuments and valuable artifacts were also destroyed in the process. At the end of this endeavor, these countries had little left which could remind them of their history.

Radical elements may indeed be present in these countries. However, is it right to kill innocent civilians and destroy a country in order to obtain revenge on a few people? It is even more pitiable to see that even the United Nations has been unable to exert its influence and prevent powerful nations from going to war against the weaker ones. Calls from various Human Rights groups have also gone unnoticed. The countries which are very much capable of neutralizing the situation are maintaining silence just for their personal gains. The most prominent indicator of this condition is the attack by Israel on Lebanon. The intensity of this attack kept rising for more than thirty days, in spite of calls from various countries of the world to initiate a ceasefire in the region.

The infants who grow up in these war stricken countries have every right to be proud of their history and culture. Every person living here today will want to teach his children about his country’s glorious past. For that, it is important that the historical value of monuments and artifacts be preserved properly. The life style of the people should also be conserved and protected from the changes brought about my modernization. For all these reasons, it is very much important that all countries of the world work together to make peace and prosperity a reality.