Have you ever gotten into to a fight over something ridiculous? Well I sure have, and so has the world. During the course of this story, I will include some of the most ridiculous wars in our world’s history, such as the Pig War, The War of Stray Dogs, and finally the Nika Riot.

The Pig War started in June of 1859 and ended only a few months later in October of 1859.  Though this dispute caused no human casualties, it was over the most ridiculous reason; a pig. The Pig War happened because the United States and Britain were arguing over the border between the two countries in the San Juan Islands. One of the reasons why it is referred to as the pig war, is because an owner of a pig let it cross the border and a dispute occurred. This war has also been called other names such as the, Pig Episode, the Pig and Potato War, the San Juan Boundary Dispute, and the Northwestern Boundary dispute.

The War of Stray Dogs was started in 1925, which is not that long ago if you think about it.  Though the two countries involved in this war had been disagreeing for a while, the war had started because a greek soldier had been shot while chasing his runaway dog and went over the Bulgarian border. The shooting which was caused all because of a man trying to catch his runaway dog was sort of a rallying cry to Greeks who soon after invaded Bulgaria and occupied several villages. They eventually negotiated a ceasefire, but not before 50 people had lost their lives over the argument.

The Nika Riot occurred in 532 AD.  Mobs of extreme proportion flooded the streets of Constantinople, burning large parts of the city and nearly toppling the government of the Emperor Justinian, and all of it because of chariot racing. The races held at Constantinople’s hippodrome had become quite popular during the sixth century, and fans had organized themselves into strict factions. These ancient hooligans acted more like gangs than fans of chariot racing, and the most powerful groups known as the Blues and the Greens became known for their barbarism. After the incidents in the streets of Constantinople occurred it appeared that 30,000 people had lost their lives.

All of these wars could have been simply avoided by accepting their different aspects, or just talking about the problem. It is horrible that so many people had to lose their lives over so pity arguments that could have just been simply avoided. You should keep these wars in mind the next time you have a big fight over something silly.