If they have to debate it, declare it, or convince the public it's necessary, war is not justified. The only ethical war is the one where you have no choice; where you see the whites of their eyes coming down your street.
Fighting them "over there", so you don't have to "fight them here" makes you the aggressor; the invader. You have become what you claim to be fighting.
If you want the thrill of war, and want to go help someone else defend themselves from invaders coming down their street, go right ahead. At your own expense, and without dragging me into it.
But are you willing to die for a lie?
The North Korean government's intercontinental nuclear missiles will turn out to be as imaginary as Saddam's weapons of mass destruction and the Gulf of Tonkin "incident". But governments need war.
As Hermann Goering, Nazi military leader, said: "Naturally the common people don't want war.... But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along.... All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."
Are you letting yourself be dragged along?
Even if the North Korean government has the claimed weapons, war isn't justified.
If one government has nuclear weapons, it is a hypocrite to forbid those same weapons to another government. No government is so special it can forbid others from doing the same thing it does. It's like an armed thug going into another thug's house and declaring he isn't allowed to own a gun to defend himself.
I have nothing against North Koreans. They should rise up and physically remove their dictator-- and keep repeating the process until there is no one left who is willing to rule.
Of course, this is something every population should do. It would be beneficial to civilization if the lust to govern were purged from the gene pool once and for all.
Unfortunately, many people want to be governed-- or want others to be governed-- and someone will always be sick enough to fill that desire. Those who govern need wars to prevent the people from noticing the government is doing most of the attacking and robbing. They need the people to believe someone else is the enemy. So government breeds war.
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