Tuesday, January 25, 2005

Chess, soldiers and war

From Joygantic, another example of chess as political metaphor:

I grew up surrounded by folks in the military and have had friends who have served so I have deep admiration for the individuals who join the service even as I despise the way that they are too often turned into chess pieces for arrogant politicians.

Soldiers as chess pieces in the hands of "evil" politicians is actually a fairly common theme. Of course, this all depends on your perspective on the specific policy. For those opposed to the war, the soldiers are inanimate objects directed by others; for supporters, they are real people exhibiting human characteristics like heroism and sacrifice.

No comments: