--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not pro-war. But I think war has been…" description: "\"I'm not pro-war. But I think war has been the dominant condition of humankind, and peace has been the anomaly - certainly sustained periods of peace th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fad/philip-gourevitch-17484_aggression_i-m-not-pro-war-but-i-think-war-has-been_2072782.png" --- # I'm not pro-war. But I think war has been the dominant… ![“I'm not pro-war. But I think war has been the dominant condition of humankind, and peace has been the anomaly - certainly sustained periods of peace that profit great masses of people - and I think war has worked, even awful hellish wars: worked to staunch fascist aggression in Europe, worked to…” quote by Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fad/philip-gourevitch-17484_aggression_i-m-not-pro-war-but-i-think-war-has-been_2072782.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fad/philip-gourevitch-17484_aggression_i-m-not-pro-war-but-i-think-war-has-been_2072782.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fad/philip-gourevitch-17484_aggression_i-m-not-pro-war-but-i-think-war-has-been_2072782.png) > “I'm not pro-war. But I think war has been the dominant condition of humankind, and peace has been the anomaly - certainly sustained periods of peace that profit great masses of people - and I think war has worked, even awful hellish wars: worked to staunch fascist aggression in Europe, worked to preserve the Union after secession in the United States, etc. Not always, maybe not often, but to say never is to reject history in favor of a wishful unreality.” [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. War dominates human history, yet peace, though rare, yields massive benefits; war can sometimes serve necessary purposes but is not a reliable solution. **In simple terms:** War is common, peace is rare but valuable. Key Takeaway Recognize peace’s rarity and strive for it responsibly. Themes war peace history ethics politics Mood reflective serious Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - policy making - education - conflict resolution - peace activism Key Concepts realism historical analysis moral dilemma Questions to Reflect On - How can societies reduce reliance on war? - What structures sustain lasting peace? A Different Perspective War often causes unintended suffering and may not achieve intended goals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aggression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aggression/) [Anomalies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anomalies/) [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Fascists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fascists/) [Humankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humankind/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Profit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profit/) [Secession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secession/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Unions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unions/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Unreality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreality/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Wars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wars/) ## Related quotes > [If you took the profit out of war, there would be no war. What the hell do you think war is? You think we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/if-you-took-the-profit-out-of-war-there-would-be-no-war-what-the-hell/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [Love and war, it seemed, worked by the same rules. One had to hurry, before the fires flared out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-oliveira/love-and-war-it-seemed-worked-by-the-same-rules-one-had-to-hurry/) [Robin Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-oliveira/) > [The one thing that I'm most proud of, during the Second World War, I worked on airplanes in a defense plant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-duccini/the-one-thing-that-i-m-most-proud-of-during-the-second-world-war-i/) Ruth Duccini > [“Everyone was important during the war. Everyone. We worked together and we won.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/everyone-was-important-during-the-war-everyone-we-worked-together-and/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [It is not just the vulgar, premature bawdiness of pro-war triumphalists which I find revolting. It is that they accuse anti-war people of being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-alibhai-brown/it-is-not-just-the-vulgar-premature-bawdiness-of-pro-war/) Yasmin Alibhai-Brown > [Only in America can you be Pro-Death Penalty, Pro-War, Pro-Unmanned Drone Bombs, Pro-Nuclear Weapons, Pro-Guns, Pro-Torture, Pro-Land Mines, AND still call yourself 'Pro-Life.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fugelsang/only-in-america-can-you-be-pro-death-penalty-pro-war-pro-unmanned/) [John Fugelsang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fugelsang/) > [Rupert Murdoch's vast newspaper empire has waged a relentless pro-war propaganda war before and since the war began.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margo-kingston/rupert-murdoch-s-vast-newspaper-empire-has-waged-a-relentless-pro-war/) [Margo Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margo-kingston/) > [Conservative talk radio hosts have conned the American people into thinking there is such a thing as a pro-life, pro-war, pro-gun, pro-death penalty Christian.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janeane-garofalo/conservative-talk-radio-hosts-have-conned-the-american-people-into/) [Janeane Garofalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janeane-garofalo/) > [Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-s-patton/battle-is-the-most-magnificent-competition-in-which-a-human-being-can-2/) [George S. 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I think it would be extraordinary, as a writer, not to want to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aminatta-forna/what-ultimately-happened-is-that-my-country-had-a-war-i-think-it/) [Aminatta Forna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aminatta-forna/) > [“We are men, fighting God's war. Do you think it strange?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raev-gray/we-are-men-fighting-god-s-war-do-you-think-it-strange/) Raev Gray > [ We went to America a few times and \[Brian\] Epstein always tried to waffle on at us about saying nothing about Vietnam. So there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/we-went-to-america-a-few-times-and-brian-epstein-always-tried-to/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) ## More by Philip Gourevitch > [“Like Leontius, the young Athenian in Plato, I presume that you are reading this because you desire a closer look, and that you, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/like-leontius-the-young-athenian-in-plato-i-presume-that-you-are/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [“…the war about the genocide was truly a postmodern war: a battle between those who believed that because the realities we inhabit are constructs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/the-war-about-the-genocide-was-truly-a-postmodern-war-a-battle/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [“As far as the political, military, and economic interests of the world’s powers go, (Rwanda) might as well be Mars. 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The ostensible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/my-definition-of-a-good-book-is-one-that-you-would-read-for-pleasure/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [ “Just as a state's police swear to prevent and punish murder, so the signers of the Genocide Convention \[in 1948\] swore to police a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/just-as-a-state-s-police-swear-to-prevent-and-punish-murder-so-the/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [“When you're that resigned and oppressed you're already dead. It shows the genocide was prepared for too long. I detest this fear. These victims…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/when-you-re-that-resigned-and-oppressed-you-re-already-dead-it-shows/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) > [“Colonisation is violence, and there are many ways to carry out that violence. 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We all come running, and the one that stays quiet, the one that stays home, must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-gourevitch/so-there-is-responsibility-i-cry-you-cry-we-all-come-running-and-the/) [Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) [Explore all 37 Philip Gourevitch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-gourevitch/) ## More Aggression quotes > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I used to fight with hate. There's been a lot of aggression in my past growing up and stuff. 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