In light of the 150 year anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg and the oft repeated claim that only men support and encourage war let's look at what the "Encyclopedia of the American Civil War" has to say about women's roles in helping men pile up the bodies on the battlefield:
"When the hostilities began, white women made themselves essential to the war effort by encouraging men to enlist. They appealed to the manhood and honor of men and urged them to fill the ranks of the military. Men who refused often found themselves snubbed by the ladies. Emma Edmonds, a Union Spy, noted that Southern women "were the best recruiting officers", refusing to tolerate, or admit to their society any young man, who refuses to enlist...
Such sentiments were not restricted to the South..."
pg 2143
http://books.google.com/
This is just a glimpse at how the power of sexual selection has been partially driving history behind the scenes and how it is just as powerful as the male politician's speeches and propaganda and nothing has changed down to the present day.
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