Most of the time in modern war- the people fighting each other don’t have any personal beef. It might be that someone from their country or group did something to piss the other guys off- but the guy you’re shooting at- the o it thing he did was shoot at you... but you shot at him. And why? Because someone else told you both to shoot at each other. Often times these conflicts are more about politics and economics that may or may not have some broad impact on our personal lives- but ultimately, your enemy is often just some guy exactly like you- and you both found yourself across from each other, and it is now your job to kill each other. That is why propaganda and such generally paints an “enemy” as inhuman, as an insect or demon- as a heartless soulless monster who just wants to take whatever it is that you value the most.
The weapons of modern war are often impersonal. Bombs and mortars, mines and missiles- even infantry shooting across the field often won’t really see the human they are killing. A human shaped figure that is trying to kill you and your friends. That’s relatively easy to live with. It’s hard to kill a person you’ve looked in the eyes- if you know their name, their spouses name, that they just want to go home and work on their farm and that they do t hate you or your people- they just want to live their life and the war just got in the way.
War is strange. It is often where the most amazing and beautiful and spectacular and pure aspects of humanity can be witnessed- juxtaposed against the cold pragmatism of survival, the brutality and the worst aspects of the human race and even the humans involved. War is waste- but... it’s also sometimes necessary when to not fight, or to lose, would mean the end of your way of life or the end of your people (or on behalf of another’s people or way of life.)
WW1 soldiers are basically young armed citizenry who considered the war as a great adventure that serves as a right of passage from all the propaganda about it before realizing the horrible truth with no way to back out.
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