The War and Criticism

I recently watched a little of the documentary The War that PBS has been broadcasting. After seeing lots of war movies and hearing lots of stories, I thought I had at least some grasp of what happened during World War II. I don't think the quoting of numbers or the few movies I'd seen really gave me a clue. I have only seen a few hours of this new documentary, and it helped me understand how little I did grasp the magnitude of what was happening in the world back then.

A few months ago, I heard a talk show on NPR that was discussing the bombing of Hiroshima. One WWII vet (who fought in the Pacific) called in to defend the bombing, saying that the number of lives saved due to the bombing was estimated to be in the millions. Someone rebutted saying that those numbers were probably exaggerated.

What I realized was that it is easy for most of us, who are one or two or three generations removed from the experience, to criticize. We didn't witness the Japanese soldiers who would fight to the death or the civilians who chose to jump off cliffs rather than surrender or be taken captive. Yes, I admit the bombing was horrible, as was the entire war, but who is to say if the bombing was right or wrong under the circumstances?

More and more, I realize why God told us to 'Judge not, lest ye be judged.' Most of our criticisms and opinions come from pride and ignorance. More and more, I see the world is not a picture of black here and white there, but of black and white so intermingled, the picture is mostly grey.