fandomhigh | Leadership, Thursday, Period 1, Class 12 (12/4/08)

"War is hell," Nathan said after everyone had gotten to their seats. "There aren't many people who find war fun. There are those who find it inevitable. As a leader one of your hardest decisions will be about when to go to war.

"Do you go to war to defend your people? What counts as defense? If you know of a threat do you strike first or do you wait until you're hit? Is it ethical to make the pain and death of your own people a touchstone? Are you serving your people well if you allow them to be hurt?

"What about others? Many would argue that genocide is wrong, but would you go to war over it? Does it matter if it's happening to an ally? An enemy? Someone who you have no relationship with at all? What about if your country is suffering a depression and doesn't have the resources to go to war? What if you think you should go to war but your people don't agree? Does it matter if their disagreement is based in a prejudice of some kind? What if it's based on the argument that resources are better spent caring for the sick and poor within your country?

"As you can see, it's a complicated topic," Nathan said. "There is no way that it could be covered in a single class. For today let's limit ourselves to a discussion of those questions. Or, boiled down to a single one: When, as a leader, do you decide to go to war?

"Let's hear your thoughts."

[ooc: OCD is up!]

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"As the last possible option," Ben said firmly. "Not by accident, not because someone else is saber rattling and you feel threatened, and not because you want to prove how much better you are than the rest of your family."

Someone has issues, yes.

Nathan had no idea what that was like. Certainly not in terms of daddy issues.

"What if people get hurt while you wait?" Nathan asked.

"People get hurt all the time," Ben said with a shrug. "People get killed in wars. And most of the time at the end of it all, you just have a bunch of dead people and not a lot of change. There's been some war or another going on in my galaxy for the better part of a century. Most of the beings don't even notice any more."

"So you think war is never an answer," Nathan said.

"I think there's a reason that assassination exists," Ben said. "It solves a lot of problems with minimal body count."

Nathan couldn't help but snicker, though he did so quietly. "You make a good point."

Ben flashed him a grin. "Infiltration is what I do," he said. "Why waste thousands when you only need one?"

Leadership, Thursday, Period 1, Class 12 (12/4/08)

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