Thread: Most soldiers won't shoot

Very interesting and uplifting.

Greater Good Magazine

Originally Posted by get_involved

Very interesting and uplifting.

Greater Good Magazine

I don't know, 15% to 20% seems like an awfully low number. It would seem to me that the survival instinct takes over when someone else is shooting at you or your friends.

This has been known for some time and the Army, at least, has gone to great lengths to ameloriate the "problem" which Marshal identified.

Starting back in the '50's, they incorporated psychologically-based training to offset the reluctance most people have to killing. For instance, they switched targets on the rifle range from paper bullseyes to human silouhette and, later, added mechanical targets which actually fall over when hit. Today, they use MILES equipment which adds a whole new degree of realism to practicing killing.

The result has been a huge increase in the number of soliders willing to fire their weapons in combat. By the Vietnam War, it was approaching 90% and is probably higher now, though I've seen no statistics on this war.

Here's the problem, though: While a soldier is conditioned to killing in his training, there is no companion de-programming before he gets out. That's not to say soldiers exiting the Army are dangerous, though that can be the case, but it leads to life-long problems as they attempt to live in a society where killing the threat is not the accepted solution to most problems.

Originally Posted by get_involved

Very interesting and uplifting.

Greater Good Magazine

Tom Tancredo is a douchebag.

Originally Posted by Zarathustra

Tom Tancredo is a douchebag.

Nice flame but its getting old.

Kit you raise a good point. One of my clients right now has a son who just got back from Iraq on a dishonorable discharge, not sure the charge. However this kid is so high strung he is almost dangerous where everything can "just die" and now he thinks he should be able to open carry to disrupt social atmosphere... like politics or anti-war... even though he hates the war... he said.