War
Most Victims are Children
As wars have developed in the twentieth century, the ratio of civilian deaths to military deaths has changed radically. One hundred years ago 5% of war casualties were civilians. In World War I civilian deaths were about 10%. In World War II, 65%. Tactics of modern wars have shifted casualties to 90% civilians. More than half of these civilian casualties are children less than 14 years of age. This is only the direct casualties from bombs, bullets and landmines. Add to this indirect and long-term casualties caused by destroyed infrastructure and a fractured society. resulting in disease, starvation, homelessness and the numbers become even more grim. On top of this add the long term effects of highly toxic armaments rained down upon the victim country – Agent Orange in Viet Nam, Depleted Uranium in Yugoslavia, Iraq and Afghanistan – and the result is generations of suffering borne by civilians, mostly children.
Your tax dollars pay for this. Your politicians vote for it. Your media obscures it. And a few profit from it.
Do something. Learn more. Talk about it.
"War, we must realize, is the massive and indiscriminate killing of human beings. War, is always fundamentally a war against children. And therefore, whatever just cause is presented to us, whether true or invented, whatever words are thrown at us about fighting for liberty or democracy or against tyranny, we must reject war as a solution." |
