War is an upheaval that arises as a result of a misunderstanding among two or more groups of people which can be within a nation, or among states. There are many types of war. One of the examples is conventional warfare and this is where soldiers fight physically with their opponent and the types of weapons used can be nuclear, biological, and chemical. We also have unconventional warfare and this involves issues like the conquering of states which is by use of force. The last type of war is civil warfare and this entails a particular nation fighting within itself. To have a better understanding of the impacts of war we will discuss separately the impact of war on issues like social, economic, political, technological, and legal issues.
Social Impact of War
War has many social impacts most of which are negative. Many lives were lost as a result of war and the reason for this is due to the halt of food production since the available money funds were chained into the production of war weapons and other military requirements. The primary necessities such as food, shelter, and clothing are not produced or if produced they are small therefore they are scarce and secondary needs like education are put aside. Other deaths were as a result of gunshot wounds and bad weather conditions in which the soldiers fought. In this case, war leads to the discovery of one’s enemies so that proper strategies are laid down to avoid conflict. War fosters patriotism since during war people have to come together to fight the enemy.
The other bad health impact of war includes emotional distress due to their loved ones, post-traumatic stress disorder for soldiers, and they were brainwashed. Among nations or neighbors, it caused hatred among the fighting group. For the stronger states who won over their opponents, they enslaved them since they took charge of the defeated state. War forces people out of their homes to go to unknown destinations.
During the war, a lot of property is lost since this is the time when there is no security and some people take I for granted to steal from others. After the war, much land is rendered useless after the bombing activities which make it infertile and useless. For example after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing that place has remained useless and not safe for human settlement.
Impacts of war on Technological
The war led to the change in styles soldiers used, the way they fought and the tactics applied. Most of the technological effects of war are positive. Some of the changes had occurred are discussed as follows. First, there was the change in aerial bombing and reconnaissance e.g. the one used in World War 2 for bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Before the start of world war one, not so many developments had been made in aerial technology but by the start of the second world, many developments had been made.
Secondly, the war led to the need for change in the communication industry since during war good communication is required to know what is taking place ahead before making any move. The communication industry saw the use of transcript and enlargement versions in the First World War but for the Second World War, many changes had taken place in communication technology.
The World war witnessed the use of poisonous gases which included chlorine, phosgene, and even mustard gas. The efficiency of gas use depends on major on the wind direction which needed to be flowing in the direction of the enemy before opening the gas cylinder. The gas alarms had to be properly set to help in alerting the people sleeping or those involved in other activities before opening the gas cylinder. For the soldiers, it was time to put on protective clothing.
Impact of War on Economy
The economy is usually adversely affected by war outbreaks. This is because the available government funds are used in the production of war weapons and other military requirements like military clothing, military boots. The food reserves are spared for the soldiers therefore the common people are highly likely to starve. Other manufacturing companies have to close down since even if they produce there are no people to buy as most are fleeing for their lives except those involved in the war. A necessity such as clothing production is put on a halt. On the other hand, war discourages investment in manufacture due to insecurity and lack of labor as people live in fear. This makes manufacturers that can only produce military goods favored since this is what is mostly required. According to Jack and Katherine of the department f Rutgers University, they said that war lead to a temporary decline of dyadic trade in most instances war has a permanent long-term effect on the trading relationship and infract, trade increases in the post-war period.
Veteran paid raise day by day as the war continues therefore the country has to put aside enough funds to pay the returning soldiers as a sign of appreciation for participation. The families who have also lost their loved ones have to be compensated even though this is never enough for the life of their loved lost.
Impact of War on Politics
War effects make leaders realize the need for co-operation for the sake of their people and to stabilize the country into its normal state due to shame. As result coalitions are formed which bring together the two fighting parties eg a coalition formed by Lloyd George in December 1916 in Britain.
It leads to the formation of fairer bills by the state which favors the common citizen eg the Emergency of War Workers National Committee was formed to look after soldier’s families in terms of food and rent so that prices don’t rise uncontrolled. It helps in the reformation of the government administration in question.
Legal issues
The war led to the formation of acts for war detainees and international terrorists. These acts state how those responsible are treated.
Causes of Terrorism
There are two types of terrorism according to Joshua Sinai and they include ethnic-nationalist terrorism, religious terrorism, and Socio-revolutionary terrorism. Usually, terrorists consist of a group of people or groups of people who come up to rebel against something and they are highly destructive e.g. al Qaeda and the Taliban. Some of the causes of terrorism are increased gap between the poor and the rich, delayed and unfair justice, neglect of job allocation for the poor, and unqualified. Another cause of terrorism according to Tore Bjogo is political chaos and legitimized the seizure of power by brutal military leaders who indiscriminately prosecuted.
Suggested ways on How Global Community Can Address the Reality to Terrorism
The global community should encourage people should learn to forgive so that they don’t revenge back on their enemies. This can be done by the formation of forums to encourage people to love each other. The global community should encourage the need for people to come together and have a dialogue over any pressing issue. After the war, the parties involved should be brought together to negotiate and in case something has been grabbed it’s returned to the owner to avoid future war out-beak. After the war, a plan should be drawn between the two sides fighting so that the stronger power does not cause any more harm through settlement surrender. Joshua Sinai (2008) said, “The terrorists should be evaluated to find out why the groups are formed, how they are led and organized, motivations, strategies and demands and their relation with their constituency and after this then they can be resolved by conciliatory measures mix of coercion and conciliation and others by defeating terrorists militarily.
Conclusion
Generally, war is not good and it must be avoided at all costs. It has so many negative effects as discussed above. Those people found to have been involved should face the law accordingly so that those planning to do so learn a lesson. In case of any misunderstandings, there should be a dialogue to settle down an issue and a conclusion made so that people live together as brothers and sisters. All governments should treat their citizens equally to avoid the outbreak of wars in the future and for us citizens, we should choose our leaders wisely and not along tribal lines to avoid the outbreak of civil wars.
References
William Kornblum and Joseph Julian. Social Problems: (thirteenth edition). Prentice Hall. (2009)