Phil > The act of war, and especially the training of soldiers is about the best direct example I can think of of acceptance of authority to commit acts that would otherwise be criminal.
Today, they have even managed to transform war to a game, similar to an arcade game for children, where there is no contact whatsoever with the enemy and especially to observe the brutal consequences of one's actions. "Smart" bombs can be dropped from 20-40,000 feet which perform, in effect, the industrial extermination of any number of innocent people and yet the one who presses the button to institute such mass murder sees only his computer screen, maybe. Likewise the one who shoots cruise missiles from 500 miles away has no idea who he is killing or maiming.
In fact, I was surprised that the US actually sent real, live soldiers into Iraq. In fact, even now, I can't work out why courageous men like General Ari Fleischer, sitting in his studio in Washington, or Vice President Cheney, hidden 5000 feet beneath a mountain somewhere, couldn't just have pressed a few buttons and wiped out all the Iraqis before breakfast.
Maybe next time. |
