Introduction
Murder is an act of crime in which prior meditations about target persons are involved before performing the execution. It is undoubtedly that individuals can plan, either solely or in groups, and wage war against their fellows. Engagement in violence has been associated with historical accounts of humankind’s evolution (Glowacki et al. 2). However, researchers in social science hold the contrary opinion that serial killing while engaging in violent exchange among people emerged from cultural diversity. The biological perspective affirms that “it is scientifically incorrect to say that we have genetically inherited the tendency to make war from our animal ancestors” (Durrant 429). The implication is that violence is not encoded in the genes of parents and transferred to offspring. It is conceivable that wrangles among people emerge from contentious matters which yield explosive exchange of words and physical fights. Consequently, suffering and death mark the end of involvement in wars (Durrant 429). This paper discusses whether war is a form of murder, emphasizing human intentions and incidences leading to fights and serial killing.
Main body
Engagement in wars that culminate in genocide or homicide comes from predetermination to execute people or an individual. As defined by international legal acts, genocide is the “act committed with intent to destroy, in whole or part.” Involvement in wars follows the incitement generated by contrasting political opinions held by different parts (Harff 58). It is acceptable that humans can live peacefully in a cosmopolitan manner, defying cultural, racial, and religious differences. Moreover, the co-existence can be extended into uniting in economic and social agreements for team benefit. However, political agendas associated with democracy or other leadership often shift people’s attention from loving the neighbors and patriotism (Turchin et al. 16384). Considering the case of the Rwanda genocide of the 1990s, the Tutsi community developed the motive to slay the Hutu people following political divides among them. Wars stemming from communities that lead to genocide and assassinations are directed by individuals with clear intentions (Harff 58). Thus, war is not accidental, making it a criminal offense.
Warfare is preceded by contrasting opinions, which can be managed to cultivate peace; however, people get inclined to endanger the lives of their opponents. Violence encompasses people’s aggressiveness to withstand the pressure exerted on them by their opponents (Dutton et al. 457). Behavioral scientists unveil that hostility is a survival tactic to over threats. However, the use of war as a survival avenue is socially destructive since it involves eliminating other people. For instance, incidences of homicides account that women are inclined to execute their husbands after an encounter of frustration from them (White et al. 623). The idea that hostility is a mechanism of withstanding hostility from the surrounding world is socially unacceptable. It is conceivable that war is cultivated by fear and xenophobia, and the survivor of such incidences live at the expense of another person’s life (Dutton et al. 458). Eliminating an individual through killing is not a survival tactic and should be charged as murder crime.
Conclusion
In conclusion, wars involve aggressive and hostile behaviors that put the lives of contrasting parties at risk. Fights are often initiated by political agendas and fear of threats, which impairs people’s intention to commit murder. However, every incidence of war is preceded by resolutions made to engage in hostile behavior and execute the opponent intentionally. Thus, war is a form of murder since it involved an intentional criminal offense.
Works Cited
Durrant, Russil. “Collective Violence: An Evolutionary Perspective.” Aggression and Violent Behavior, vol. 16, 2011, pp. 428-436.
Dutton, Donald G., et al. “Extreme Mass Homicide: From Military Massacre to Genocide.” Aggression and Violent Behavior, vol. 10, 2005, pp. 437-473.
Glowacki, Luke, et al. “The Evolution Anthropology of War.” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 2017, pp. 1-20.
Harff, Barbara. “No Lessons Learned from the Holocaust? Assessing Risks of Genocide and Political Mass Murder since 1955.” American Political Science Review, vol. 97, no. 1, 2003, pp. 57-73.
Turchin, Peter, et al. “War, Space, and The Evolution of Old World Complex Societies.” PNAS: Anthropology, vol. 110, no. 41, 2013, pp. 16384-16389.
White, Andrew Edward, et al. “When Nasty Breeds Nice: Threats of Violence Amplify Agreeableness at National, Individual, and Situational Levels.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 103, no. 4, 2012, pp. 622-634.