David Suzuki Says War Achieves Nothing, Citing 1970 Song
david suzuki opens by quoting the refrain of Edwin Starr’s 1970 song “War,” and uses that protest song to argue that war achieves “absolutely nothing.” He says the cost is paid first by soldiers and civilians, who die, lose limbs, and carry wounds that last long after the fighting ends.
The column says wars are given different names — righteous war, just war, defensive war, war of aggression, and police action — but those labels blur when leaders explain why they enter combat. Suzuki says the reality is simpler: people die.
Edwin Starr And Vietnam
Suzuki returns to the song that became popular at the height of the Vietnam War. He uses its blunt chorus as the column’s starting point, then extends the same claim across modern conflicts, saying soldiers, civilians, and children all die in war.
He points to a March report that said the U.S. military accidentally struck an Iranian elementary school, killing at least 168 children and 14 teachers. The report said two sources briefed on preliminary findings of an ongoing military investigation linked the strike to outdated information about a nearby naval base.
PTSD And Battlefield Damage
The column says war leaves many people physically and emotionally scarred. Suzuki writes that soldiers and civilians regularly lose limbs or eyes or suffer brain damage, and he notes that the American Psychiatric Association adopted the term Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in 1980 to classify troubling, complex symptoms of Vietnam veterans.
He also ties war to disease and famine. The column says epidemics such as dysentery and typhus, along with famine, caused millions of conflict-related deaths, and estimates that World War II produced 19-28 million additional deaths from disease and famine.
Jesus And Peaceful Living
Suzuki closes by contrasting war with the image of Jesus many once expected: coming with a sword, raising an army, and destroying oppressors. Instead, he says, Jesus walked humbly, preached fellowship and forgiveness, and taught peaceful living in relationship with God.
The column’s conclusion is direct: war was never the answer for Jesus, and it was never a means to an end or justified. That leaves the reader with the same standard Suzuki applies throughout the piece — war may be renamed, but it still kills, scars, and destroys without producing anything worth the cost.
