fiftythreefiftyfive t1_jco481n wrote
Reply to comment by almuqabala in Schopenhauer and Hegel’s feud was metaphysical: a pessimist who recognised the unchangeable essence of the world and an optimist who saw human history as perpetual growth could never get along. by IAI_Admin
Even for all its tragedies, the war in Ukraine doesn’t come remotely close to the horrors of the great wars of the 20th century, neither in its scale, nor in the method in which it is conducted.
Both Vietnam and the Korean War had millions of civilian deaths. Millions. Ukraine will have several tens of thousands by the time it’s done. Horrendous but… still very small in comparison.
And that’s not even talking about the methods. The Nazis were obviously monsters, but even looking at the Allies - the indiscriminate bombing civilian targets to oblivion was not only not as controversial as today but the standard practice. Killing hundreds upon hundreds of thousands.
Nowadays, when we talk about civilian bombing, it’s generally about infrastructure being destroyed and whether the collateral was acceptable or not. No one wants to be seen as targeting civilians and comparatively, the deaths among them remain low.
almuqabala t1_jco4lz5 wrote
Targeting civilians was a crime even back in WWI. The weapons have become more sophisticated, thus less civilians suffer. But the casus belli is still as ridiculous in Ukraine as it was during both world wars. I would not call Russians super-smart and mature when they follow the original Nazis step by step. Doesn't look they've learnt anything.
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