Perpetual war
Encyclopedia
Perpetual war refers to a lasting state of war
with no clear ending conditions. It also describes a situation of ongoing tension that seems likely to escalate at any moment, similar to the Cold War
.
(476-221 BC), the Hundred Years' War
(1337–1453), Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), the Thirty Years' War
(1618–1648), the Crusades
(a series of nine related episodes over a long period 1095–1291), and the Northern Crusades
(beginning 1193 and ongoing through the 16th century).
s, where the major powers provided aid to various local factions engaged in so-called "wars of national liberation". When the major powers became directly involved, as the U.S. in the war in Vietnam
, or the Soviet Union
in Afghanistan, the results were generally a disaster for the major power. Another example of protracted conflict were the Indochina Wars
, wherein rebel Vietnamese forces fought from 1941 until 1979 against a variety of external foes (including Japan
, France
, the United States
, Cambodia
, and China
), as well against other establishment Vietnamese factions. The Cold War officially continues on the Korean peninsula where North and South signed an armistice in 1953 after three years of active war
.
The dispute over Kashmir
between India and Pakistan, and over various Himalayan regions between China and India, ongoing since 1947 in the former case and 1962 in the latter, have led to the formation of the line of control
and the Line of Actual Control
respectively. Along these theaters the armed forces of the involved countries stand in continuous preparedness on such battlegrounds as the Siachen glacier
. Major flare-ups from time to time have resulted in the Indo-Pakistani Wars
and the Sino-Indian War
.
The Arab-Israeli Conflict has been a continuous issue, in fact going back long before the foundation of the state of Israel in 1948. Disputes between Jews
and their Arab
neighbors in the area go back at least to the beginnings of Zionist settlement and the growth of Arab Nationalism
, in the early Twentieth century - deriving from the two sides claims to the same territory. Syria
and Lebanon
remain in a state of war with Israel.
Since the end of World War II
, Japan
and Russia
remain legally in a state of war; due to the Kuril Islands dispute
, there was never a peace agreement ending their war - however, there has not been any actual fighting since 1945, and the two countries are in practice at peace with each other.
is among the critics of Western policies in the Middle East
and argues that recent Western conflicts against the Middle East after the end of the Cold War have been part of a new perpetual war. He suggests that Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush launched attacks on Iraq
, Sudan
, and Afghanistan
to distract the population from his domestic political problems and claims that despite victorious claims after the first Gulf War that Saddam Hussein had been "defanged," he was again the target of Western attacks through 2001 (and of course beyond).
Similarly, Ted Koppel described the War on Terror
as "Our Children's Children's War."
Critics have used the term "perpetual war" in reference to non-military "wars", such as the "War on Drugs
", "War on Poverty
", "War on Cancer
", Lou Dobbs
's "War on the Middle Class", or the "War on Terrorism
" or Bill O'Reilly
's "War on Christmas".
, posit that a state of perpetual war is an aid to (and is promoted by) the powerful members of dominant political and economic classes, helping maintain their positions of economic and political superiority.
Some have also suggested that entering a state of perpetual war becomes progressively easier in a modern democratic
republic
such as the United States
due to the continuing development of interlocking relationships between those who benefit directly from war and the large and powerful companies that indirectly benefit and shape the presentation of the effects and consequences of war (i.e., the formation of a military-industrial complex
).
There has been some criticism from anti-war activists and Bush critics, for example, that the Bush administration's ties to Halliburton
influenced the decision to go to war in Iraq
and Afghanistan
. These claims have been denied by the George W. Bush White House.
However, the concept of a military-industrial complex
was first suggested by President Eisenhower and the idea that military action can be seen as a form of market-creation goes at least as far back as speeches beginning in 1930 prior to the publication of War Is a Racket
in 1935. The economic make-up of the 5th century BC Athens-led Delian League
also bears resemblance to the economic ramifications of preparing for perpetual war.
With the advent of perpetual war, communities have begun to construct War Memorial
s with names of the dead while the wars are ongoing. See Northwood Community Park's memorial
which has space for 8000 names (approximately 4,500 used at time of construction) and plans to update it yearly.
by George Orwell
was written from the viewpoint of a citizen of one of three fictional world-dominating superstate
s. These nations are in a state of perpetual war with each other. The state of war is used by each of the states to justify the control of their populations using Stalinist
or other methods. By artificially creating fear and hate of an enemy, the actual existence of which is never made completely certain, the governments provided an excuse for their failures and, in the case of Oceania, enforced obedience to Big Brother
. Moreover, eternal war formed the bedrock of the economy, as people could be kept busy manufacturing goods that would not improve their living standards, but would instead be destroyed on the battlefields. Thus perpetual war not only kept the population busy, it also encouraged a "siege mentality
" in which hatred of the enemy and love for the government's protection were social norms.
In the science-fiction/fantasy universe of Warhammer 40,000
, the Imperium of Man has been at war for over 10,000 years against numerous alien races and human traitor factions. The concept of perpetual war is integral to the franchise. The Dark Heresy
roleplaying game explains that this sets up a siege mentality in the human race that helps bind them together under Imperial rule; a similar situation to that of the superpowers of 1984.
In "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
", the idea of perpetual war is overtly part of the story; Solid Snake
is tasked by Roy Campbell with assassinating Liquid Ocelot to prevent a state of perpetual war, on top of the war economy
.
In "Passport to Sirius" Robert Silverberg
wrote of a future Earth with endless, but totally fictitious distant space wars. Their purpose was to regulate consumer spending. The idea was that people would buy more (thus increasing production) when the news was bad, and less (thus controlling inflation
) when the news was good.
In the science-fiction/sentai
manga Cyborg 009
, the main antagonist is the Black Ghost Organization, a secretive collection of world leaders and arms dealers whose goal is to create a perpetual World War
in order to continuously sell their prototype weapons of mass destruction, without fear of there ever being the "threat" of world peace.
In BBC TV's Doctor Who
serial "Genesis of the Daleks
", the Kaleds and the Thals are in a state of perpetual war for 1000 years. All types of weapons were in use - Chemical, Biological and Nuclear, causing some inhabitants to become mutants. The Daleks came about as a result of the Kaled Scientist Davros
discovering what the eventual fate of the Kaled race was to be and creating a survival suit for their eventual form, eventually corrupting this project by creating a race of creatures that were answerable to no one, eventually not even Davros.
In Doctor Who
, the Sontaran Empire
and Rutan Host
have waged an interstellar war against each other for 50 millennia. However no one has yet written any canon type material to actually state what the cause of this war was.
The Forever War
by Joe Haldeman
depicts an interstellar war between humans and aliens that lasts more than a millennium. In the meantime, the human race comes under control of an autocratic military bureaucracy, and is eventually changed into a race of clones.
In the 2000 AD
comic strip Rogue Trooper
, the Southers are committed to a perpetual war against the Norts on the planet of Nu-Earth
. The war included biological and chemical weapons and so polluted the planet that the Southers created the Genetic Infantry who could fight on the planet without the need for protective suits.
In the real-time strategy franchise Supreme Commander
, the player is tasked with ending the Infinite War, which has raged for over 1,000 years.
Palpatine
, the primary antagonist of the "Star Wars
" saga, orchestrates a perpetual war to accommodate his rise to power. Subsequently, this war provides the setting for all six movies in the series.
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
with no clear ending conditions. It also describes a situation of ongoing tension that seems likely to escalate at any moment, similar to the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
In past history
Examples of wars that seemed perpetual during their course included the Warring States PeriodWarring States Period
The Warring States Period , also known as the Era of Warring States, or the Warring Kingdoms period, covers the Iron Age period from about 475 BC to the reunification of China under the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC...
(476-221 BC), the Hundred Years' War
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
(1337–1453), Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
(1618–1648), the Crusades
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
(a series of nine related episodes over a long period 1095–1291), and the Northern Crusades
Northern Crusades
The Northern Crusades or Baltic Crusades were crusades undertaken by the Christian kings of Denmark and Sweden, the German Livonian and Teutonic military orders, and their allies against the pagan peoples of Northern Europe around the southern and eastern shores of the Baltic Sea...
(beginning 1193 and ongoing through the 16th century).
In recent history
The Cold War, lasting almost 50 years, is an example of such a war, although largely fought by the major powers through a large number of small proxy warProxy war
A proxy war or proxy warfare is a war that results when opposing powers use third parties as substitutes for fighting each other directly. While powers have sometimes used governments as proxies, violent non-state actors, mercenaries, or other third parties are more often employed...
s, where the major powers provided aid to various local factions engaged in so-called "wars of national liberation". When the major powers became directly involved, as the U.S. in the war in Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, or the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in Afghanistan, the results were generally a disaster for the major power. Another example of protracted conflict were the Indochina Wars
Indochina Wars
The Indochina Wars were a series of wars fought in Southeast Asia from 1947 until 1979, between nationalist Vietnamese against French, American, and Chinese forces. The term "Indochina" originally referred to French Indochina, which included the current states of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. In...
, wherein rebel Vietnamese forces fought from 1941 until 1979 against a variety of external foes (including Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
), as well against other establishment Vietnamese factions. The Cold War officially continues on the Korean peninsula where North and South signed an armistice in 1953 after three years of active war
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
The dispute over Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
between India and Pakistan, and over various Himalayan regions between China and India, ongoing since 1947 in the former case and 1962 in the latter, have led to the formation of the line of control
Line of Control
The term Line of Control refers to the military control line between the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir—a line which, to this day, does not constitute a legally recognized international boundary but is the de facto border...
and the Line of Actual Control
Line of Actual Control
The Line of Actual Control is the effective border between India and People's Republic of China . The LAC is 4,057-km long and traverses three areas of northern Indian states: western , middle and eastern...
respectively. Along these theaters the armed forces of the involved countries stand in continuous preparedness on such battlegrounds as the Siachen glacier
Siachen Glacier
The Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains at about , just east of the Line of Control between India-Pakistan. India controls all of the Siachen Glacier itself, including all tributary glaciers. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Karakoram and...
. Major flare-ups from time to time have resulted in the Indo-Pakistani Wars
Indo-Pakistani Wars
Since the partition of British India in 1947 and creation of India and Pakistan, the two South Asian countries have been involved in four wars, including one undeclared war, as well as many border skirmishes and military stand-offs...
and the Sino-Indian War
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War , also known as the Sino-Indian Border Conflict , was a war between China and India that occurred in 1962. A disputed Himalayan border was the main pretext for war, but other issues played a role. There had been a series of violent border incidents after the 1959 Tibetan...
.
The Arab-Israeli Conflict has been a continuous issue, in fact going back long before the foundation of the state of Israel in 1948. Disputes between Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and their Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
neighbors in the area go back at least to the beginnings of Zionist settlement and the growth of Arab Nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
, in the early Twentieth century - deriving from the two sides claims to the same territory. Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
remain in a state of war with Israel.
Since the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
remain legally in a state of war; due to the Kuril Islands dispute
Kuril Islands dispute
The Kuril Islands dispute , also known as the , is a dispute between Japan and Russia over sovereignty over the South Kuril Islands. The disputed islands, which were occupied by Soviet forces during the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation at the end of World War II, are under Russian...
, there was never a peace agreement ending their war - however, there has not been any actual fighting since 1945, and the two countries are in practice at peace with each other.
In current events
British journalist Robert FiskRobert Fisk
Robert Fisk is an English writer and journalist from Maidstone, Kent. As Middle East correspondent of The Independent, he has primarily been based in Beirut for more than 30 years. He has published a number of books and has reported on the United States's war in Afghanistan and the same country's...
is among the critics of Western policies in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and argues that recent Western conflicts against the Middle East after the end of the Cold War have been part of a new perpetual war. He suggests that Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush launched attacks on Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
to distract the population from his domestic political problems and claims that despite victorious claims after the first Gulf War that Saddam Hussein had been "defanged," he was again the target of Western attacks through 2001 (and of course beyond).
Similarly, Ted Koppel described the War on Terror
War on Terror
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
as "Our Children's Children's War."
Critics have used the term "perpetual war" in reference to non-military "wars", such as the "War on Drugs
War on Drugs
The War on Drugs is a campaign of prohibition and foreign military aid and military intervention being undertaken by the United States government, with the assistance of participating countries, intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade...
", "War on Poverty
War on Poverty
The War on Poverty is the unofficial name for legislation first introduced by United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during his State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. This legislation was proposed by Johnson in response to a national poverty rate of around nineteen percent...
", "War on Cancer
War on Cancer
The War on Cancer refers to the effort to find a cure for cancer by increased research to improve the understanding of cancer biology and the development of more effective cancer treatments, such as targeted drug therapies. The aim of such efforts is to eradicate cancer as a major cause of death....
", Lou Dobbs
Lou Dobbs
Louis Carl "Lou" Dobbs is an American journalist, radio host, television host on the Fox Business Network, and author. He anchored CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight until November 2009 when he announced on the air that he would leave the 24-hour cable news television network.He was born in Texas and lived...
's "War on the Middle Class", or the "War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
" or Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly (political commentator)
William James "Bill" O'Reilly, Jr. is an American television host, author, syndicated columnist and political commentator. He is the host of the political commentary program The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, which is the most watched cable news television program on American television...
's "War on Christmas".
In socioeconomics and politics
Some analysts, such as Noam ChomskyNoam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
, posit that a state of perpetual war is an aid to (and is promoted by) the powerful members of dominant political and economic classes, helping maintain their positions of economic and political superiority.
Some have also suggested that entering a state of perpetual war becomes progressively easier in a modern democratic
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
such as the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
due to the continuing development of interlocking relationships between those who benefit directly from war and the large and powerful companies that indirectly benefit and shape the presentation of the effects and consequences of war (i.e., the formation of a military-industrial complex
Military-industrial complex
Military–industrial complex , or Military–industrial-congressional complex is a concept commonly used to refer to policy and monetary relationships between legislators, national armed forces, and the industrial sector that supports them...
).
There has been some criticism from anti-war activists and Bush critics, for example, that the Bush administration's ties to Halliburton
Halliburton
Halliburton is the world's second largest oilfield services corporation with operations in more than 70 countries. It has hundreds of subsidiaries, affiliates, branches, brands and divisions worldwide and employs over 50,000 people....
influenced the decision to go to war in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. These claims have been denied by the George W. Bush White House.
However, the concept of a military-industrial complex
Military-industrial complex
Military–industrial complex , or Military–industrial-congressional complex is a concept commonly used to refer to policy and monetary relationships between legislators, national armed forces, and the industrial sector that supports them...
was first suggested by President Eisenhower and the idea that military action can be seen as a form of market-creation goes at least as far back as speeches beginning in 1930 prior to the publication of War Is a Racket
War is a Racket
War Is a Racket is the title of two works, a speech and a booklet, by retired U.S. Marine Major General Smedley D. Butler. In them, Butler frankly discusses from his experience as a career military officer how business interests commercially benefit from warfare.After he retired from the Marine...
in 1935. The economic make-up of the 5th century BC Athens-led Delian League
Delian League
The Delian League, founded in circa 477 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, members numbering between 150 to 173, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Plataea at the end of the Greco–Persian Wars...
also bears resemblance to the economic ramifications of preparing for perpetual war.
With the advent of perpetual war, communities have begun to construct War Memorial
War memorial
A war memorial is a building, monument, statue or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or to commemorate those who died or were injured in war.-Historic usage:...
s with names of the dead while the wars are ongoing. See Northwood Community Park's memorial
Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial
The Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial is a memorial to those American troops that have lost their lives in the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The names on the memorial come from US DoD casualty records for Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn...
which has space for 8000 names (approximately 4,500 used at time of construction) and plans to update it yearly.
In fiction
The 1949 novel Nineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-Four
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel about Oceania, a society ruled by the oligarchical dictatorship of the Party...
by George Orwell
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
was written from the viewpoint of a citizen of one of three fictional world-dominating superstate
Superstate
A superstate is an agglomeration of nations and/or states, often linguistically and ethnically diverse, under a single political-administrative structure. This is distinct from the concept of superpower, although these are frequently seen together...
s. These nations are in a state of perpetual war with each other. The state of war is used by each of the states to justify the control of their populations using Stalinist
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
or other methods. By artificially creating fear and hate of an enemy, the actual existence of which is never made completely certain, the governments provided an excuse for their failures and, in the case of Oceania, enforced obedience to Big Brother
Big Brother (1984)
Big Brother is a fictional character in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. He is the enigmatic dictator of Oceania, a totalitarian state taken to its utmost logical consequence – where the ruling Party wields total power for its own sake over the inhabitants.In the society that Orwell...
. Moreover, eternal war formed the bedrock of the economy, as people could be kept busy manufacturing goods that would not improve their living standards, but would instead be destroyed on the battlefields. Thus perpetual war not only kept the population busy, it also encouraged a "siege mentality
Siege mentality
Siege mentality is a shared feeling of victimization and defensiveness. It is a state of mind whereby one believes that one is being constantly attacked, oppressed, or isolated and makes one frightened of surrounding people...
" in which hatred of the enemy and love for the government's protection were social norms.
In the science-fiction/fantasy universe of Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000 is a tabletop miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop, set in a dystopian science fantasy universe. Warhammer 40,000 was created by Rick Priestley in 1987 as the futuristic companion to Warhammer Fantasy Battle, sharing many game mechanics...
, the Imperium of Man has been at war for over 10,000 years against numerous alien races and human traitor factions. The concept of perpetual war is integral to the franchise. The Dark Heresy
Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay
Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay is a series of role-playing games with a common system, sharing the same dark, gothic background as the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop miniatures game...
roleplaying game explains that this sets up a siege mentality in the human race that helps bind them together under Imperial rule; a similar situation to that of the superpowers of 1984.
In "Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
is a video game developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 console. The game was directed by Hideo Kojima and made its worldwide release on June 12, 2008, ten years after the release of Metal Gear Solid and twenty years after the North American release of Metal Gear.Guns of the Patriots...
", the idea of perpetual war is overtly part of the story; Solid Snake
Solid Snake
Metal Gear, initially released in 1987, introduces Solid Snake, the rookie recruit of the elite special-forces unit FOXHOUND. Snake is sent by team leader Big Boss into the rogue nation Outer Heaven to rescue his missing teammate Gray Fox and discover who or what the "METAL GEAR" mentioned is, and...
is tasked by Roy Campbell with assassinating Liquid Ocelot to prevent a state of perpetual war, on top of the war economy
Permanent war economy
The concept of permanent war economy originated in 1944 with an article by Ed Sard , Walter S. Oakes and T.N. Vance, a Third Camp Socialist, who predicted a post-war arms race...
.
In "Passport to Sirius" Robert Silverberg
Robert Silverberg
Robert Silverberg is an American author, best known for writing science fiction. He is a multiple nominee of the Hugo Award and a winner of the Nebula Award.-Early years:...
wrote of a future Earth with endless, but totally fictitious distant space wars. Their purpose was to regulate consumer spending. The idea was that people would buy more (thus increasing production) when the news was bad, and less (thus controlling inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
) when the news was good.
In the science-fiction/sentai
Sentai
in Japanese language is a word for a military unit and may be literally translated as "squadron", "task force", "group" or "wing". The terms "regiment" and "flotilla", while sometimes used as translations of Sentai, are also used to refer to larger formations....
manga Cyborg 009
Cyborg 009
is a manga created by Shotaro Ishinomori. It was serialized in many different magazines, including Monthly Shōnen King, Weekly Shōnen Magazine, Shōnen Big Comic, COM, Shōjo Comic, Weekly Shōnen Sunday, Monthly Shōnen Jump and Monthly Comic Nora in Japan...
, the main antagonist is the Black Ghost Organization, a secretive collection of world leaders and arms dealers whose goal is to create a perpetual World War
World war
A world war is a war affecting the majority of the world's most powerful and populous nations. World wars span multiple countries on multiple continents, with battles fought in multiple theaters....
in order to continuously sell their prototype weapons of mass destruction, without fear of there ever being the "threat" of world peace.
In BBC TV's Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial "Genesis of the Daleks
Genesis of the Daleks
Genesis of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who that was originally broadcast in six weekly parts from 8 March to 12 April 1975. It marks the first appearance of Davros, the creator of the Daleks.-Plot:...
", the Kaleds and the Thals are in a state of perpetual war for 1000 years. All types of weapons were in use - Chemical, Biological and Nuclear, causing some inhabitants to become mutants. The Daleks came about as a result of the Kaled Scientist Davros
Davros
Davros is a character from the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Davros is an archenemy of the Doctor and is the creator of the Doctor's deadliest enemies, the Daleks...
discovering what the eventual fate of the Kaled race was to be and creating a survival suit for their eventual form, eventually corrupting this project by creating a race of creatures that were answerable to no one, eventually not even Davros.
In Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, the Sontaran Empire
Sontaran
The Sontarans are a fictional extraterrestrial race of humanoids from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and also seen in spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures. They were created by writer Robert Holmes.-Culture:...
and Rutan Host
Rutan Host
Rutans are a fictional extraterrestrial race from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. They have been at war with the Sontaran Empire for more than 50,000 years, and this war dominates both cultures to the exclusion of all else...
have waged an interstellar war against each other for 50 millennia. However no one has yet written any canon type material to actually state what the cause of this war was.
The Forever War
The Forever War
The Forever War is a science fiction novel by American author Joe Haldeman, telling the contemplative story of soldiers fighting an interstellar war between humanity and the enigmatic Tauran species...
by Joe Haldeman
Joe Haldeman
Joe William Haldeman is an American science fiction author.-Life :Haldeman was born June 9, 1943 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. His family traveled and he lived in Puerto Rico, New Orleans, Washington, D.C., Bethesda, Maryland and Anchorage, Alaska as a child. Haldeman married Mary Gay Potter, known...
depicts an interstellar war between humans and aliens that lasts more than a millennium. In the meantime, the human race comes under control of an autocratic military bureaucracy, and is eventually changed into a race of clones.
In the 2000 AD
2000 AD (comic)
2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic. As a comics anthology it serialises a number of separate stories each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated 26 February. IPC then shifted the title to its Fleetway comics subsidiary which was sold...
comic strip Rogue Trooper
Rogue Trooper
Rogue Trooper is a science fiction strip in the British comic 2000 AD, created by Gerry Finley-Day and Dave Gibbons. It follows the adventures of Rogue, a G.I. and his three comrades' search for the Traitor General...
, the Southers are committed to a perpetual war against the Norts on the planet of Nu-Earth
Nu-Earth
Nu-Earth is the name of a fictional planet near 2 suns and a wormhole that is the main setting for the Rogue Trooper fictional universe.-History:...
. The war included biological and chemical weapons and so polluted the planet that the Southers created the Genetic Infantry who could fight on the planet without the need for protective suits.
In the real-time strategy franchise Supreme Commander
Supreme Commander (video game)
Supreme Commander is a real-time strategy computer game designed by Chris Taylor and developed by his company, Gas Powered Games. The game is considered to be a spiritual successor to Taylor's 1997 game Total Annihilation,, alongside the Spring remake...
, the player is tasked with ending the Infinite War, which has raged for over 1,000 years.
Palpatine
Palpatine
Palpatine is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the Star Wars saga, portrayed by Ian McDiarmid in the feature films.Palpatine first appeared as the unnamed Emperor of the Galactic Empire in the 1980 film Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back...
, the primary antagonist of the "Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
" saga, orchestrates a perpetual war to accommodate his rise to power. Subsequently, this war provides the setting for all six movies in the series.
See also
- Cold WarCold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
- List of wars on concepts
- Permanent Arms Economy
- Perpetual peacePerpetual peacePerpetual peace refers to a state of affairs where peace is permanently established over a certain area .Many would-be world conquerors have promised that their rule would enforce perpetual peace...
- Report from Iron Mountain
- Rogue stateRogue stateRogue state is a controversial term applied by some international theorists to states they consider threatening to the world's peace. This means meeting certain criteria, such as being ruled by authoritarian regimes that severely restrict human rights, sponsor terrorism, and seek to proliferate...
- The Long War
- War Is a RacketWar is a RacketWar Is a Racket is the title of two works, a speech and a booklet, by retired U.S. Marine Major General Smedley D. Butler. In them, Butler frankly discusses from his experience as a career military officer how business interests commercially benefit from warfare.After he retired from the Marine...
- Endemic warfareEndemic warfareEndemic warfare is the state of continual, low-threshold warfare in a tribal warrior society. Endemic warfare is often highly ritualized and plays an important function in assisting the formation of a social structure among the tribes' men by proving themselves in battle.Ritual fighting permits...
- List of wars extended by diplomatic irregularity
External links
- Homeland Security: When The Phoenix Comes Home To Roost, by Douglas Valentine.
- The Eternal War Parade, from Intervention Magazine.
- The State, by Randolph BourneRandolph BourneRandolph Silliman Bourne was a progressive writer and "leftist intellectual" born in Bloomfield, New Jersey, and a graduate of Columbia University...
– origin of the phrase, "war is the health of the state". - The War on Drugs as the Health of the State, by Bob BlackBob BlackBob Black is an American anarchist. He is the author of The Abolition of Work and Other Essays, Beneath the Underground, Friendly Fire, Anarchy After Leftism, and numerous political essays.-Writing:Some of his work from the early 1980s includes...
. - Nineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-FourNineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell is a dystopian novel about Oceania, a society ruled by the oligarchical dictatorship of the Party...
(full text), by George OrwellGeorge OrwellEric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
.