Is there a time for war?
Ideally, no. Yet I am not naive enough to believe that if opposing parties just sat down to talk it out, conflict would always be avoided (think Israel and Palestine). I am not naive enough to believe that humanity is inherently good. I am not naive enough to think that this country is the greatest on earth or that it is the defender of international freedom and democracy.
War should only be fought if it is provoked. An attack on this country would merit war against those who had attacked. Thus, September 11th would be justification for a war on those extremist groups who had sought to do us harm. It would not justify the attack on foreign governments, or an entire way of life that extremism is one incredibly small part of. The only other justification for war is when there is widespread international agreement for these actions. War is not a conflict between two countries, it has repercussions over the entire globe. If it is in the will of the international community, and if it seeks to protect an oppressed group, or secure democracy, then it is just. If war is started on the basis of unsubstantiated claims of weapons of mass destruction, or a chance at foreign oil, or any sort of interest rooted in one nation, then it is not just.
The better question to ask would be if any of the wars of this country in the past half century had been justified. The answer is, quite simply, no. This country, despite all its claims to the contrary, has not waged war to protect me.
EDIT:
What I said only more intelligent: http://logsdonapenglish6.blogspot.com/2012/11/consensus.html
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