“In a real war no one knew which side he was on, and there were no flags or commentators or winners. In a real war there were no enemies.”

— J. G. Ballard, book Empire of the Sun

Source: Empire of the Sun (1984), p. 6
Context: Real war was the thousands of Chinese refugees dying of cholera in the sealed stockades at Pootung, and the bloody heads of Communist soldiers mounted on pikes along the Bund. In a real war no one knew which side he was on, and there were no flags or commentators or winners. In a real war there were no enemies.

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J. G. Ballard78

British writer 1930–2009

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