Recently, I have talked about topics that mention war. Since topics about war might be sensitive in the future, I will talk about them now. Today, I will explain why frugality and mobility help us live well in wartime by seeing the logic of war.
How to prepare for the coming wartime
Sometimes, we want to prepare for the future, especially during changing periods like now. Perhaps we are already in such a turbulent period. In these years, several wars have occurred around the world. Those wars seem to spread more and more. The stable period might be over.
In my opinion, the next big war has already begun. Centered on the conflict in the Middle East, two big powers would be confronted. That is why preparation for it is necessary.
However, we sometimes don’t know what to prepare for the coming wartime.
Today, I will explain why frugality and mobility to the countryside help us live well in wartime. This logic might give us ideas to prepare for the future.
The logic of why humans begin to conflict
To explain it, let me explain the logic of war.
We might sometimes wonder why we begin to conflict. I also don’t like conflict or war. It seems ridiculous that the same species hurt or kill each other. We often think that if we continue such foolish things, we will soon go extinct.
However, we humans have thrived, even though we often have done such foolish things from at least 50,000 years ago. The world population of humans has increased by about 100,000 to 200,000 times since that era. Why have humans thrived? There should be a reason for conflict: to keep our lives or to avoid extinction.
In my opinion, war and conflict have meaning. I will explain what a war or conflict is below.
The meaning of the conflict: two lions example
In my definition, war is a process of figuring out which system is more abundant. This comparison allows us to choose a more efficient management system when humans face decline.
To make understanding it easy, we assume two male lions are in the same place in a savanna. They each have a territory to live in. To maintain their species, the territory is essential because they need a certain amount of prey as food. They must secure some territory to survive. If they don’t secure territory and their prey is reduced, both lions will die due to hunger, even if there is enough prey for one lion to survive.
That is why they conflict, and we have borders. With the system of territory, the lions can maintain at least one individual, even if the prey is reduced.
The other kicked-out lion moves more outside to explore and survive where there is less prey. If necessary, he evolves and adapts to the new environment. It is like a bird having evolved into a penguin to live in the Antarctic.
To decide which one to leave, they stress each other out. They threaten each other with a growl and then begin a battle. That reveals which is more bearable to stress. It is efficient to leave the more bearable individual because he can live in a narrower territory. That allows all lions in the savanna to allocate the area and distribute their prey efficiently.
The meaning of human war
If they have a sociality like monkeys, the centered individual will be the boss in the area. That is why the boss in primitive species tends to be the most bearable individual against stress. The efficiency of life caused the social system of boss dominance.
Then, we humans began to compare which system was more abundant through war or conflict because we humans have a more complex social system and multiple values. We cannot decide which social system we should leave by just threatening.
That is why I can say that war is a process of figuring out which system is more abundant when we face decline. The fundamental is the same as the lion.
The more peaceful countryside
That gives us an understanding of how to live well in wartime, even if it is an unforgivable war.
From that logic, we can understand that the more inconvenient a place is, the more peaceful it is. Perhaps that is why civilians often escaped to the countryside during the war.
In other words, fundamental facilities for the efficient area would be risky places, such as power plants for the city area, transport systems in the city area, storage of resources, or large factories. These are all the fundamentals of abundance. That is why militaries first try to destroy the enemy’s efficient facilities.
In such a situation, frugality and mobility help us live well. Frugality gives us the skill to live well with fewer costs. Mobility allows us to move to a more peaceful countryside.
To increase our mobility, reducing our belongings might be a way. A late escape will be fatal in an emergency. The deeper the conflict, the less anyone will help us. We have to rely on ourselves.
Then, after people figure out which system is more abundant, they will end the war. If you want to be on the winning side, it might be better to think about which is more abundant.
Conclusion
That is why frugality and mobility help us live well in wartime.
Perhaps living in the countryside would be more comfortable during that period.
This knowledge might give us ideas to survive in the coming wartime.
Thank you for reading this article. I hope to see you in the next one.
