This survey is about war - what is it good for - absolutely nothing - except as part of a popular song from the 1960s.

1. The Dutch and English spent years warring over nutmeg. While nutmeg today is used to jazz up pumpkin pie and eggnog, it was once highly valued for its alleged power to ward off the Black Plague. The Banda Islands of Indonesia were flush with nutmeg trees and became a prime target of European business interests. The Dutch East India Company arranged what they thought were exclusive trade agreements with the indigenous population who were not used to this type of trade and who continued to sell to others - mainly the English East India Company. The Dutch massacred much of the indigenous population and then warred with the English for about 40 years. The Black Plague went away and nutmeg had nothing to do with it. There may be more stupid reasons for starting a war but do you agree this one is right up there?

2. Tens of thousands died in the Dutch conquest of the Banda Islands, known as the Nutmeg Wars, with estimates suggesting that over 13,000 of the original 15,000 inhabitants were killed, enslaved, or died from starvation and disease between 1621 and the Dutch establishment of control. The Dutch repopulated the islands with slaves and laborers to work the nutmeg plantations after the original inhabitants were largely eliminated or forced to flee. Today we change street names, tear down statues and take other steps to rewrite history. The fact is, this is what nations used to do but few do anymore. Should we use this example when forming our opinions of the Dutch or consign these atrocities to history while never forgetting that they happened.?