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In reply to the discussion: Psychologists Propose Horrifying Solution to PTSD in Drone Operators [View all]Xithras
(16,191 posts)As one of only a few people on DU who has shot another human being, I can state this unequivocally: It doesn't matter how evil the other guy is, or how much the other guy had his fate coming or "deserved it"...taking the life of another person is a traumatic experience that leaves deep psychological scars.
Nearly 20 years ago I shot a man who was in the middle of committing a violent rape (I've posted about it on DU a few times over the years, so a search will give you the gory details if you want them). He certainly deserved what he received, and I probably saved the woman from even greater physical harm (he had a knife shoved into her neck), but that didn't stop me from puking my guts out after the shooting, it took days for my hands to stop shaking, and several years to stop having weird dreams about it (mostly I kept "hearing" the gurgling noise his body made as his lung sucked air through the bullet hole).
I was traumatized, and I pulled the trigger only once, against a guy who unquestionably "deserved it", and to save a victim who unquestionably did not. Heck, my victim didn't even die...a nearby ER guaranteed that he lived to face a trial and a long prison sentence. I can't imagine the trauma experienced by those who have to kill repeatedly, or even worse, experienced by those who have pulled the trigger only to learn later that they unintentionally took out a wedding, or a bunch of kids playing in an orchard.
Human beings aren't meant to kill each other. There are times when we must do so anyway, but it's never easy, and it's never without shame or guilt...no matter what Hollywood, John Wayne, the chickenhawks, or the Republicans would like you to think.