Can War Be Moral?

War is an armed conflict between groups, often nations.  Every war has been justified, sometimes for good reasons, sometimes for bad.  Of course, war is justified by those who participate and perpetuate it, but often war is claimed right by those outside of the conflict.

But if we looked at the true cost of war, and the outcome, could war ever be justified?  Is there ever a war that did not kill children?  Recognizing that children always die in war, although always unintentionally, could we ever justify the death of even a single child?  What about the death of other innocents? What would be worth the cost of a helpless innocent?  A political ideology?  An economic system?  The comfort of an entire nation?  Once we have agreed upon this cost, then perhaps we would see that we are still making the demands of the ancient King of Crete, who requested Athenian youth for the sake of peace.

There is one thing that might be worth the death of a child and this is the deaths of many others.  In order to save the lives of many, we might allow the death of an innocent.  So that thousands of lives might be saved, we might sacrifice one baby to the flames.  But would we sacrifice that child if there was only the threat of thousands killed, but we didn't know if that threat was carried out?  Would we sacrifice that child to get revenge on thousands that have already been killed-- is that worth it?  

However modern warfare takes place in occupied cities, with missile attacks.  So civilian deaths are not counted on our fingers, but in the thousands-- sometimes the hundred thousands.  What is worth such a cost?  The death of millions?  Perhaps.  But an ideology?  A racial hatred?  To alleviate a nation's anxiety? Economic comfort?  To save the lives of hundreds?  What is worth the lives of thousands of non-combatants?  Of people dying because other people of other nations make the decision to kill?

Is war the natural order of things?  If so, should it be?