Full Idea
The distinction between soldiers and civilians, which the pressure of circumstances has already almost obliterated, should be entirely abolished. Every individual in the population owes his country the whole of his strength, resources and life itself.
Gist of Idea
The soldier-civilian distinction should be abolished; every citizen is committed to a war
Source
Simone Weil (The Need for Roots [1943], II 'Nation')
Book Reference
Weil,Simone: 'The Need for Roots' [Routledge 2002], p.162
A Reaction
Written in London in 1943. The year carpet bombing seriously escalated. The facts of warfare can change the ethics.