Originally Posted by Dan_Chamberlain
How many of us would kill Osama bin Laden, whether or not he had a weapon in his hand?

I'm not saying that not having the stomach for it makes one less a man. But I'd certainly say that's a murder I'd be proud of.

Dan


Actually, there's a Kill Warrant out on OBL. So by theoretically killing him, you wouldn't be satisfying YOUR desire, you'd be carrying out the order of a democratically elected government...ours. If the killer got some sort of personal sick pleasure from the killing, while it would still be legal, it would also still be sick.

As far as killing the enemy, there are problems with granting an open license. Have been since warfare was invented, and it kept up with technology after WW I. No poison gas, for example. The biggest problem is if you do to them before they do it to you something that falls outside the pale, you look like Hitler. Or like OBL. Which leads to Kill or Capture warrants being placed on your head. And say if you used poison gas to kill people, soldiers or civilians, all sorts of retribution would be justified by the enemy.

Escalation of hostilities is what started WW I and II. Acts, outside the pale of what was considered acceptable, led to extermination camps of those the Third Reich considered enemies. No one thinks these acts were justified.

Not many problems you can't fix
With a 1911 and a 30-06