So it's ANZAC Day

That's right folks, the 25th of April is upon us, and with it the day that everyone in Australia and New Zealand are supposed to commemorate those killed in various wars gone by. Of course, for those of us unable to escape the media hype as well as we would have liked, it's been everywhere for days on end regardless, so much so that it might have been difficult to judge exactly when the day itself had arrived. I also ask whether there is any point to it anymore.

Think about this, what is the real reason that people who were killed in war have a day dedicated to commemorating their loss, while people who were killed by cancer, AIDS or old age don't? The standard line seems to be that they "sacrificed themselves for our country". However, let's dig a little deeper on that definition, let's look at the factors that brought about their sacrifice, and let's ask: why?

The first World War was supposed to be the "war to end all wars". I suspect the idea was that after the needless sacrifice of so many lives, it would never happen again. A few years later, along came another. Since then, these conflicts have been happening more and more regularly. And please, spare me the "they started it" tirade. For one thing, it takes two to fight, and for another, I think "starting a war" is an accusation that could be leveled against a great many countries over the last century or so (including those accusing the other side and claiming to be "fighting for our freedom").

These days, wars are regularly broadcast into the loungerooms of many people thanks to cable television. It's become big bucks for people like CNN and various other media outlets. It wouldn't surprise me if this wasn't at least part of the motivation for some of the tall tales of "weapons of mass destruction" that appeared in various media outlets (I wonder if some of these journalists ever considered a career change, possibly becoming weapons inspectors themselves?). They certainly took enough pot shots at anyone who suggested that the current war in Iraq could have been avoided.

The implication here is clearly this: whatever the horrors that soldiers of years gone by have endured, it seems that the world (including Australia) has learned nothing. Nobody seems interested in preventing wars from occurring -- quite the contrary in fact. People seem more enthusiastic than ever about the prospect of going to war (admittedly, most of these people won't have to go to the front line). Why then, (apart from the fact that it's a public holiday) are we bothering to commemorate this? Why do we commemorate the inability of mankind to learn from it's mistakes?