collateral damage

[deep]

What is acceptable?

The armed insurgent (al-qaeda fighter with ak47) ran into the building
The insurgent fired at the coalition soldiers (U. S. marines).

The coalition soldiers called in an air strike.
The insurgent was killed. There was collateral damage.
The U. S. paid reparations for the collateral damage.


a. The building was a pottery shop and the merchant's goods were destroyed, collateral damage.
b. The building was an Iraqi home and 11 innocent women and children were killed, collateral damage.
c. The building was an Iraqi government building with five members of the new government inside and all five were killed.

What is acceptable?

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

Well I would always put people over property so a would be the only "acceptable" thing as far as I'm concerned.

Emotionally speaking nothing about war is ultimately acceptable for me, even though stopping an evil such as Hitler for example is acceptable and necessary.

 

[U2democrat]

What MrsS. said

 

[verte76]

Great post Mrs. Springsteen. Those are pretty much my feelings.

 

[wizard2c]

reply

This would be determined by the rules governing military/legal issues. Unfortunately war scenarios are not games and emotions become an intense issue with the general public.

Of course, I agree with the others about the human factor.

It is easy to look back at the past and recognize the errors but the difficult issue now is what the future becomes.