Desensitization (#3)

Taking the life of another is no easy feat, doing so out of the will of others rather than your own desire makes the situation that much more loathsome. However our military needs effective soldiers, we can't afford to have a platoon of gun-shy men on the front lines so as a result the soldiers are submitted to a program of desensitization training. The first step is convincing the soldiers that they are the "good guys" and by contrast, those in which they are fighting are the "bad guys". It sounds arbitrary but it is very crucial because it is easy to want to defend against an evil force threatening the world, but have the slightest shred of doubt that what you are doing is wrong and not only will you be hesitant to fight but most likely a rebellion will result. It's classic Superman Syndrome, everyone wants to be the superhero that saves the world and gets the girl, no one wants to be the villain.

One factor many people forget to take into account as well is that desensitization does not occur solely within the military, for a military campaign to be successful it needs the full support of both the soldiers and the public. A large part of desensitization occurs within the media, convincing the people that what we are doing is the right thing. Because the other side is always portrayed as the 'bad guys' it makes the value of their lives questionable and lesser by comparison. They may also be told to kill woman, children and old people. They're told to have no mercy, honor or anything else positive. They are the incarnation of everything bad, pure unconsecrated evil. 

Another important topic to consider is video games. It was the US Dept. of Defense that invented violent video games to desensitize people when it comes to killing. And look how successful it's been, a survey conducted in Chicago reveals 97% of today's youth play video games, of that 97%, 51% admit to playing violent video games rated M (mature) or AO (adults only). These games serve as way to provide early exposure to killing to kids so by the time they are old enough to enlist they've already been introduced to the concept of killing as well as increase motivation for joining the army. 

Once the moral has been established that what our side is doing is OK and the others are evil, it becomes far more acceptable, even encouraged to take their lives. For what you are doing is no longer a sin against God and humanity but a service to them.