FOUNDATION FOR THE STUDY OF POLITICAL PSYCHOSIS
presents
"THE LOVE OF SLAUGHTER"

The First World War "broke out." People didn't know exactly why. No one "willed it." But crowds in Germany and France and Great Britain were cheering wildly in anticipation of the great event that soon would occur. 

Millions of men from "enlisted." They didn't know exactly what was going to occur but were excited by the "Great Adventure" that lay before them. 

When they arrived at the Front, the young men began to be slaughtered. They did anticipate that this was going to happen. They were shocked initially, but eventually slaughter became the norm. Slaughter continued for four years, until Germany had no more men left to die. 

The Generals claimed they were trying to "win the war" and continued to send young men to the front to be slaughtered. 

Anyone could see (except the Generals and later the historians who wrote books about the war) that no side was going to "win" anything. 

The First World War was endless, perpetual slaughter. This is the most accurate or parsimonious way to describe the history of the First World War.

But the Generals kept it up, Douglas Haig for example. They couldn't resist the impulse to slaughter young men--on behalf of their countries. Haid didn't shrink from the endless, perpetual slaughter, was sure a "breakthrough" would eventually occur. But breakthroughs never did occur. Haig never was fired, rather was honored and awarded for his efforts. Honored and awarded for the slaughter he brought about. Killing young men to prove the existence of "Great Britain." 

The British, French and Germans were killing and dying to prove their devotion to their sacred ideal, their nations. Young men were murdering each other for "countries." Yet the historians and political scientists still don't know what "countries" are after all these years and why murder is justified for the sake of "countries." It's as if physicists had not yet discovered the atoms.

Memorials were erected to honor the soldiers that had died "for their countries." The erection of memorials began before the war ended. The young men die for the purpose of erecting memorials. The building of memorials could hardly keep up with the perpetual dying.

The memorials were "proved" that young men loved their countries. Accepting slaughter for the sake of love, this was the template that structured the First World War. What is being "loved" when one loves a country?