Do they train Special Forces in CPR?
Stupid question; of course they train special forces in CPR.
The Government spends a large amount of money training special forces to kill people, and they also train them in detail how to save someone's life when they are legally dead.
It's generally accepted that when you're dealing with war, the understanding of people has to change. This is why it's so important to have an absolute need for war.
Some people think these conditions can never be met, and even without having been traumatized by violence, I can see the sense in such a belief.
For this discussion, lets assume the conditions have been met. What changes?
Humans in war are no longer moral agents. They can and must be treated as means to an end.
But what about the spec operator who just shot five hostiles and dragged his buddy into the back of building? He's going to try to save his life.
Situations like that are why I don't feel comfortable with even a base treatment of utilitarianism in war. It seems necessary, but it feels impossible. That is not how humans are. You can think for a dozen lifetimes about the morality of a situation and forget it all the instant you're there.
I'll admit when I started this post with the question I had no idea how stuck I'd get in so little time. Fact is I rightly feel out of my depth. It's tempting to try and run a different angle with the post, but I think no matter where the discussion goes, if I'm being honest with myself, I get stuck.
War makes no sense.
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