Seems like you are quick to convict. You posted the video people watched it and don't agree with you. Have you ever been in that situation or even in the military? I was in the military but not in a wartime situation and I have don't feel like I can judge these guys for anything that happened. The guys they shot had weapons and the van came to pickup bodies. You have to figure that they are cohorts. Nothing wrong with what they did. As for the laughing and begging for the excuse to shoot, if you haven't been there you can't know what they go through to cope.
Actually, given my current profession I have a small idea(i mean that literally, not sarcastically. a small idea) of what it is like to have to cope with extreme stress. I also posted this as my response to the video.
I can't and won't judge anyone based on this video. I've never been involved with war. I've never had to fear for my life that way. I've never had to place partial responsibility for my life in the hands of the guy covering me. That said, I've never had to watch that person,possibly a good friend, die either.
Hindsight is 20/20. I suppose some things are made obvious in this video, and it's unfortunate. What I also can't do is fault the guys for being as paranoid as they were. I can't imagine what that's like. Personally I know that it's always better to side with caution.
Is that a gun? Not sure. ...contemplate the fact that I am in a war and people try to kill me on a daily basis... Will approach the situation assuming that it is a gun, just in case.
Vehicle. Is it occupied? Can't tell. Will approach as though it is, just in case. If there are people in the vehicle, could they be armed? ...contemplate the fact that I am in a war and people try to kill me on a daily basis... I will approach the situation assuming that the people are armed, just in case. But would I immediately fire into the vehicle? There's your line. How does one safely approach that kind of situation? "Excuse me, Mr. Person-Living-Amongst-An-Extremist-Religious-Culture-Not-Above-Blowing-Up-Yourself-And-Everyone-Else-To-Get-Your-Point-Accross, but could you make your hands visible and step out here?" I mean, how do you even work up the will to get anywhere CLOSE to people like that?
And now you've got a situation, a number of guys with equipment and you can't tell what it is. You have every reason to believe that they could be dangerous. Could there have been a better way to determine that? God, I hope so.
I won't pass judgement on these guys. None of us that haven't been there can say that we in that position would know 100% how we would react. You can't know, and if you say otherwise you're a liar.
I can say, though, that I didn't think running over a body was worthy of a chuckle. But dehumanizing an enemy is also something I have no experience in.
I can say that it would only take one, "Empty street, nice quite patrol. Civilian, looks mostly harmleOHSHI-" experience for me to approach any situation for the rest of my life in a state of suspicious alertness.
