I found the quoted article from the Worldwatch institute:
Increase of war--staggering statements from the Really Teach book
by M.J. 33 Replies latest watchtower bible
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Finally-Free
Millions of people have been killed in wars during the past century. One British historian wrote: "The 20th century was the most murderous in recorded history...it was a century of almost unbroken war, with few and brief periods without organised and armed conflict somewhere."
On the other side of the coin, this statement could also be made:
Never before have there been so many humans living on the earth who did not engage in warfare!
I'm sure it's just as accurate.
W
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rebel8
Thanks everyone, I will add this to my misquotes database.
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M.J.
Sorry but to be honest, I didn't see any misquotes there. Did I miss something?
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M.J.
Ok, despite them not referencing their sources again, I see these as legitimate quotes. And, I gotta throw them a bone on this one. Assuming their sources are accurately representing the facts, there did appear to be a big uptick in war-deaths in the 20th century. According to another paper written by the Worldwatch Institute author quoted, even the deaths per 1000 people had increased, not just total number of deaths. But at the same time, after WWII, the vast majority of war deaths were due to internal conflict, not "nation against nation". And who knows...I have a feeling that pre-20th century war estimates only count the dead from inter-national or kingdom conflicts, not the body count amassed internally by tyrannical rulership.
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M.J.
Additionally, responding to the text which was posted of the "really teach" book. Matt 24 is referred to. What it doesn't mention is that the passage says "wars and rumors of wars" and nation rising against nation are part of the beginning of the birth pangs leading UP TO the return of Christ, not signifying that Christ has already returned. Part of the conclusion of Christ's response to the question, "What will be the signs of your coming and the end of the age?" is:
"But in those days, after that tribulation [wars, nation against nation, etc.], (R) THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL BE FALLING from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. "Then they will see (T) THE SON OF MAN (U) COMING IN CLOUDS with great power and glory.
...even mentioning that BEFORE this event, if someone tries to tell you otherwise, that Christ has ALREADY RETURNED, don't believe them (v.23, 26-27), for his coming WILL BE the big event.
The entire chapter presents the "Coming of the Son of Man" with the "End of the Age" as being a singular event, as evidenced, for example, by v 39:
and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be.
So the fact that there was an increase in wars in the 20th century (at least at the beginning of the century) to some might indicate the beginning of the "birth pangs" that lead up to Christ's return. The text in no way suggests that they are the resulting aftermath of his return.
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ackack
What is the percentage of deaths caused by war in the 20th century? I'd like to see that graph.
ackack
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M.J.
See this article by the guy from the Worldwatch institute who was quoted:
At the bottom he lists 44.4 deaths per 1000 in the 20th century.
That's 4.4 percent.
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M.J.
Hold on here! Something's not right!!
Michael Renner is a senior researcher at the Worldwide Institute, political science and international relations major and author of the article quoted by the WTS regarding the numbers of war casualties over the centuries.
His numbers for war dead throughout various centuries are listed at the bottom of the article I referenced above. I just ran a quick check on a couple of wars in the 17th century. Two notable wars in the 17th century were the Thirty Years' War and the Manchu-Chinese war.
Here's what Awake! says about the thirty years' war:
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g72 4/22 p. 13 Religion’s Role in Past Wars ***The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) between Catholics and Protestants was especially terrible. During it Germany lost some three fourths of its population. Augsburg dropped from 80,000 to 18,000 inhabitants. And only about one quarter of the people of Bohemia remained. The fall of the Protestant city of Magdeburg illustrates the savagery of the fighting.
R.R. Palmer, in A History of the Modern World (New York, 1952), p. 133, put the estimates of casualties at 7-8 million civilians and 2-3 million soldiers, for a total death toll of 9-11 million.
Here's what Britannica says about the Thirty Years' War:
" Thirty Years ' War ." Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service. < http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9072150 > [Accessed May 2, 2006].
(1618–48), in European history, a series of wars fought by various nations for various reasons, including religious, dynastic, territorial, and commercial rivalries. Its destructive campaigns and battles occurred over most of Europe, and, when it ended with the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, the map of Europe had been irrevocably changed.
The extended Manchu conquest of Ming China beginning in 1644 resulted in an estimated 25 million lives lost. [E.L. Jones, The European Miracle (Cambridge, London, New York: Cabridge University Press, 1981), p.36.]
also see: http://www.san.beck.org/3-8-QingEmpire1644-1799.html
http://www.gotheborg.com/index1.htm?http://www.gotheborg.com/chronology/qing.shtml
So accounting for two wars alone from the 17th century adds up to about 35 million war casualties.
Michael Renner from the Worldwatch Institute indicates that there were 6.1 million total war deaths in the 17th century.
What is up with this?
I ran across an interesting article commenting on Worldwatch Institute publications:
http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=18800
Written By: Jay Lehr, Ph.D.
Published In: Environment News
Publication Date: April 1, 2006
Publisher: The Heartland InstituteFor many years, I have been reading the annual reports issued by The Worldwatch Institute on the state of the world's environment. With dismay and disgust, I have found them to be scaremongering doomsday diatribes filled with junk science, offering wrongheaded solutions to non-existent problems, and with socialist undertones not at all well-disguised.