Captain Obvious to the rescue: Disillusionment of a soldier and the heartlessness of the leaders who see soldiers just as numbers.
To dwell on the subject a bit more:
Think about your ordinary mission report from a failed mission in a difficult and dangerous war:
"Out of the 100 men we sent in, 21 were injured so bad they had to be sent home, 16 suffered minor injuries, such as losing a finger or a toe, 11 were killed. 52 survived without injuries, but had to extract the others, thus leading to failure of reaching their goal."
A normal, even a bit informal, report. Now imagine your friends and neighbors... How many of a hundred is Mr Smith from 3 blocks away, who'll never see his wife again, and will never lay his eyes on his newborn daughter, cause he lost both his eyes in a grenade explosion? Hom many out of a hundred it your best buddy who'll never drink a bottle of Budweiser with you again, cause his body was brought back home in 3 separate caskets. How many out of a hundred is that girl you almost had the courage to pick up, who's body was never even found?
Captain Obvious to the rescue: Disillusionment of a soldier and the heartlessness of the leaders who see soldiers just as numbers.
To dwell on the subject a bit more:
Think about your ordinary mission report from a failed mission in a difficult and dangerous war: "Out of the 100 men we sent in, 21 were injured so bad they had to be sent home, 16 suffered minor injuries, such as losing a finger or a toe, 11 were killed. 52 survived without injuries, but had to extract the others, thus leading to failure of reaching their goal."
A normal, even a bit informal, report. Now imagine your friends and neighbors... How many of a hundred is Mr Smith from 3 blocks away, who'll never see his wife again, and will never lay his eyes on his newborn daughter, cause he lost both his eyes in a grenade explosion? Hom many out of a hundred it your best buddy who'll never drink a bottle of Budweiser with you again, cause his body was brought back home in 3 separate caskets. How many out of a hundred is that girl you almost had the courage to pick up, who's body was never even found?
"God, how could I believe?", indeed.