War Sucks

Media, in all forms, make war looks like not a battlefield but a playground, where you can have tons of fun by blowing shit up, doing head shots, driving/piloting some cool rides and being a hero. What they usually fail to show off is how much being in a war sucks. Yes, sure, there is movies and books (I am yet to find a game who do this) that shows off how much war is terrible. But for each of this, there is thousands who make war looks like the most fun times you can have.

Let's start for blowing shit up. Sure, it is incredible to see it. But that house you just exploded may have being some family's house, and maybe the poor family was still inside, being crumbled by the fragments and dying horrible deaths.

Oh, you just blew that house? look who was inside it!

How about killing another soldier? That is OK, right? Except that the same way that you can have your sweetheart and family waiting you come home safely, that guy you just filled with bullets may have it too. Maybe his firstborn is waiting to meet him for the first time, except he will never meet his dad because of you.

But, hey, the other side is composed of evil people! Well... No, that is pretty unlikely. In a war, there is never a right side. There is good and bad people on both sides of any war, and you have no way to say who is good and who is bad.

War, real war, is terrifying and a disaster for common people. Once a country is at war, you have to be concerned about how long you will have basic stuff like food, electricity, running water. You worry about being hit by missiles, bullets or not find your home and family after going to work because someone exploded it.

And being a soldier isn't funny either. you have to deal with probably the most stressful situation possible everyday, not knowing if you will ever see your beloved ones again, maybe fighting a war you don't agree with but you are forced to fight because it is your job (a job you have to take an oath to start in it) and even if you survive, you may have to deal with all people who think it is the soldiers fault a war happened, not a bunch of politicians work, or people with economic interest in the war.

Some of us love the romanticized idea of war, of brave men fighting against some evil forces. That war can be a great experience, while forgetting all the damage it causes. So, while you are watching that one war movie full of explosions, one-liners and people being 'cool', please remember that war is horrible. That there is nothing 'fun' or 'cool' in it.

That war only generate death and grief.