The Weapons Business

De: Fernando Doyle

Narrado por: Virtual Voice

In general, war is a terrible thing as there is a loss of human life, and it negatively impacts large swaths of people mentally for their entire lives. The reality is that war is part of human nature, and by manufacturing weapons and engaging in proxy wars it's possible to avoid larger conflicts or all-out wars in conjunction with controlling the flow of weapons around the world. There are biological and nuclear weapons that are extremely scary, and they could potentially end human life as we know it. By allowing for proxy wars and by selling arms, nations are able to control the flow of weapons and ensure that weapons of mass destruction aren't used. The best defense is having a highly well-trained military and producing weapons systems as it allows a nation to prepare for potential conflicts and deter its enemies while ensuring that their weapons systems are state of the art so as to maintain superiority if clashes should arise. War has resulted in a great deal of hardship throughout human history, but it has also brought about most of the technological advancements that we have in our lives today. Diplomacy is great and ideal, and states that engage in trade are less likely to engage in war. A lot of what we trade, however, is the technology that was created during times of war, so although armed conflict isn't the best of what humans can offer each other, it's unavoidable at times. It does have some positive technological and social changes associated with it. Freedom isn't free, and we should champion peace; peace is generally only possible through dominating trade, the flow of arms, and deterring opposition through fear, which sometimes requires combat. I wish it were different, but it's not. War is immoral but necessary if people hope to live free and want their ancestors to enjoy the freedoms that they have had during their lifetimes. Embargoes, sanctions, and asset freezing have been used since ancient times, but they work to a limited degree. They also can harm economics globally as we have seen with sanctions on Russia during its offensive in the Ukraine. The entire globe has experienced high inflation and economic recession; meanwhile, Russian domestic production has risen to levels that are the highest that they have been since the end of the Cold War, and purchasing power parity in Russia is at the highest level that has been seen in decades. Economic war can work with diplomacy, but in general, the entire global economy suffers, except for the targeted nation, especially if they are resilient and have vast amounts of natural resources.

“The best defense is a good offense.” -Jack Dempsey