2003 Message to Garcia
The military class is the most highly honored. And what is war, what is
required for success in warfare, what are the moral standards of the
military world? The aim of war is murder; the implements of warfare –
espionage, treachery, and the inducement thereto, the ruination of a
country’s inhabitants by ravage and robbery to provision the army, the
trickery and deceit known as military strategies; the ethics of the military
class – lack of freedom, in other words, discipline, idleness, ignorance,
cruelty, debauchery, and drunkenness. Yet in spite of all this, it is the
highest class, respected by all. Every sovereign, except the Chinese, wears
a military uniform and bestows the greatest rewards on those who kill the
most people.
Leo Tolstoy
War and Peace
required for success in warfare, what are the moral standards of the
military world? The aim of war is murder; the implements of warfare –
espionage, treachery, and the inducement thereto, the ruination of a
country’s inhabitants by ravage and robbery to provision the army, the
trickery and deceit known as military strategies; the ethics of the military
class – lack of freedom, in other words, discipline, idleness, ignorance,
cruelty, debauchery, and drunkenness. Yet in spite of all this, it is the
highest class, respected by all. Every sovereign, except the Chinese, wears
a military uniform and bestows the greatest rewards on those who kill the
most people.
Leo Tolstoy
War and Peace
