Killing People 2 of 3

There's an old joke:

A man sees a woman in a bar and asks her, "Would you sleep with me for ten million dollars?"

The woman is a respectable professional, but that's a lot of money and she says, "yes."

The man then says "How about a hundred dollars?"

The woman is outraged, "What kind of woman do you think I am?"

"We've already established that," says the Man, "Now we're just negotiating the price.

I feel that way about killing people.  I think it's a bad thing to do.  Most people seem to think so as well.  You wouldn't kill your neighbor probably no matter how annoying he is.  And you probably wouldn't encourage a friend to kill his neighbor.  If someone told you they did that, you'd probably be shocked.

Yet, then there are wars.  Thousands of people always die.  Innocent people die.  But somehow people are convinced by clever marketing of a war effort that a war is necessary, and then inevitable.  People get caught up in the heat of the moment - unsubstantiated fears - and suddenly they jump on board with the idea that killing is okay.  Sometimes it's just good to hold onto certain concepts as truths.  If you change your mind or make exceptions in the heat of the moment - you might likely regret the decision.

There was a video of a soldier throwing a puppy off a cliff that outraged the world a few months ago - but this is just another step once you've started "negotiating the price."

Lots of people were supporting a war effort who have changed their minds now. 

The opinion of the many does matter - but the opinion of the many can be manipulated through propoganda and marketing (which is basically the same thing).  Be wary of what your being sold when it comes to a war.  Be wary of having your emotions manipulated into changing your core beliefs and making justifications because at that point, we're just negotiating the price.