War and the rules of war

Originally Posted by chaser

Anyhow, what do you guys think? I've always equated war with the idea that it's every man for himself as far as you and your enemy go. Defeat them at all costs, right? The implimentation of rules make it seem a lot more like a game with a huge cost. It's weird that I've lived this long and really have overlooked the idea that our leaders send us to essentially play a big (albeit much more costly) chess game in order to gain power over something. If I ever go to war, on one hand I can see myself seeking vengeance upon the person that killed the friend and comrade that went in with me, but on the other hand I can also see myself rationalizing that the person that fired the gun isn't responsible for the death of my comrade, but just another piece in his leader's game. It's the leader thats responsible, right?

Agree/disagree? Additional comments?

I agree that it's the leader that's responsible. Granted, many people that decide to fight in a war volunteer, but unless they have a personal grudge against you then they are mainly pawns in the commander's game of chess. Also, the factor that the leader is responsible could come from force recruitment (ex. the draft) or from outside influences such as culture and religion.

I was a little surprise to have read some of the codes you listed for them to follow, but I knew that they had a code of combat that they needed to follow. One that sticks out in my mind is that they will not allow women in the front line of defense. It's a little anti-feminist, but supposedly they see it as a form of protecting the female troops while allowing them to join the Army.

Jam it back in, in the dark.