A word never has a single meaning. Almost every word, in every almost every language has a dual or multiple meanings. The lexical or the dictionary definition of any word is the most precise, comprehensive and direct, one can ever expect. It is on to the human mind, to explore its dominions, deriving an extended description and the implications it provides. Similarly, the word "war," to most people around the globe, is a conflict or an armed hostility between nations or groups of people, where two or more sides are involved to achieve their demands or particular goals. From ancient to modern times, sophisticated civilizations, powerful, prosperous cultures, and mighty nations, have understood "war" as we do today.
War, no doubt, is an extraordinary driving force, that can, and has in the past inflicted massive changes in the world. It has altered how nations interact, how they exercise their power and how they affect other countries or people around them. A suitable example for this description of "war" is that of Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich of Germany. The radical and tyrannical reign of Hitler, caused havoc not only in Europe, but also throughout the globe; leaving millions and millions of innocent people dead; and accruing in what could be most accurately said as the bloodiest, most detrimental modern war ever fought in the history of humanity. It determines the balance of power, social and political order in the world, dividing the global community according to the religion, culture, wealth and military strength they possess. But if the meaning of this word is carefully analyzed and a little pondered over, it will be very evident to us, that war is not only fought in battlefields, but also in our everyday lives; like in courts for justice, in competitions for glory, in stock exchanges for profit and in catastrophe-struck places against trauma.
In the wake of the recent, devastating Hurricane Katrina, many people became homeless, while many...