Margaret Burke

December Monthly Blog

AP English 12 Mrs. Burnett

24 December 2015

War Is Not The Answer

 The United States of America has been involved in war for about 217 years. It may not be the US directly at war with another country, but we have had had constant involvement in wars since 1776. This amount of war takes a toll on countries and its citizens. Our class was able to read about the affects war has on its soldiers in the book Slaughterhouse Five. We as a class were able to see the main character deal with the after effects of war and we were able to read about the affects war had on the people around it. There is one specific point in the book that truly caught my attention pertaining to affects on the people around the war. “Then she turned to me, let me see how angry she was, and that the anger was for me. She had been talking to herself, so what she said was just a fragment of a much larger conversation. “You were just babies then!” She said “What?” I said “You were just babies in the war-like the ones upstairs!” I nodded this was true. We had been foolish virgins in the war, right at the end of childhood.”(Slaughterhouse Five. Pg.14) From this excerpt we are able to see just how much of an effect the war had on Mary's mental state. Just how upset the war really made her.. These issues can also be seen within our society. The US currently faces issues with war in Iraq and threats from ISIS. This will have an effect on soldiers who will be deployed to fight against these enemies and their loved on. It will also affect the people within the countries where the war is going on. If war remains and issue around the world, who knows the amount of damage that we can cause. In my eyes, I see a world where war will always be an issue. We have been at war for close to 217 years and if we as a country are so unable to resolve issues than will we ever? We know that our war situation relies on our president and his say on the matter, but we as the citizens have the true say. We elect who becomes our president, so in turn we are the ones saying whether we go to war or not. In conclusion war is a huge issue all around the world. Not only does it have an effect on the people who fight in, it has an effect on all of the people who are exposed to it. War is not the answer.