"God bless the troops, especially the snipers"

[AnArmyVeteran]

I just saw that on a bumper sticker. I guess that person's god likes blowing the brains out of unsuspecting victims. I don't get it...

(For what it's worth, the bumper sticker was on a huge pickup truck in Texas.) The best way to support our troops is to bring them home and stop wars that never should be fought.

[jancantor]

1. Snipers are a force multiplier nt

[11 Bravo]

32. You can run, but you'll only die tired.

[tabasco]

49. ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzz z z ...... . .

:boring:

[ZombieHorde]

2. Someone who has served may know what that sticker is about. nt

[krispos42]

4. Snipers are like attack submarines

Simultaniously everywhere, and nowhere.

[gratuitous]

3. Saw it on a car here in liberal hippie land, too

Not quite sure what god has to do with, as you point out, blowing away someone without warning.

[PavePusher]

33. If they are trying to kill your comrades, or innocents...

no warning is required or wanted.

War isn't about "fighting fair".

It's about kicking the shit out of your enemy as efficiently as possible, with the least possible damage to your own side.

Whether the war is just and right is a wholly different topic.

[gratuitous]

43. Well, since all war is sin

I suppose gradations of the sin are pretty moot, too. Invoking the blessing of a deity in the aid of a crime against humanity seems contraindicated. Almost blasphemous, if you believe in that sort of thing.

[PavePusher]

44. "all war is sin"

So, were we sinning in WWII? Or were we merely not sinning as badly as the Axis powers?

Sometimes evil must be resisted, sometimes words and forceful tones are not enough. It is no sin to resist evil with force, if that is what is required. Otherwise we must be morally obligated to bow to the first display of aggression so as to be untouched by sin.

I don't think you'd like where that would lead.

[NuclearDem]

47. Yeah...we were sinning in WWII

Yes, the Axis powers needed to be stopped. Yes, we had to use force.

But it doesn't justify what happens in the war. We firebombed German and Japanese cities and allied ourselves with a country that was just as evil as Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan.

All war IS sin. It's the taking of other people's lives. This isn't like in the old days when armies lined up nicely and just killed each other; thousands of innocent people die every time we go to war. You can argue for how justified a war is all you want, but when it comes down to it, people die, and lots of people's lives are ruined.

[pscot]

5. I seriously wonder

about the long term affect of killing 10-15-20 people with a scope sighted rifle. How do you keep it out of your dreams. The guys doing this are just kids. It's not the kind of thing you break the ice with a parties or on a first date. Perspective employers might find the experience a bit off-putting.Prospective neighbors too. This is the very definition of a serial killer, government sanction or no.One could probably make a case for war crimes as well.

[proteus_lives]

6. These men might disagree with you.

Simo Hayha, Finnish sniper who fought the Soviet Union during the Winter War.

505 confirmed kills, national hero.

Vasily Zaytsev, hero of Stalingrad.

242 confirmed kills. Hero of the Soviet Union, successful factory manager for the rest of his days.

Carlos Hathcock, USMC legend.

93 confirmed kills. Hero and life-long trainer of snipers.


How are they "serial killers"? They look like very good soldiers to me.

[daleo]

8. They killed people one after the other

So they fit the definition. By the rules of warfare, they aren't serial murderers, though.

Lots of heroes are troubled by the things they had to do.

[proteus_lives]

9. I doubt any of these men would use that asinine bumper-stickers.

Real soldiers rarely brag or thump their chests about their war-time exploits.

You know what I've heard most often from former soldiers? (Including my father)

"I did my job, same as every one in my unit."

[daleo]

48. I heard stories from my father

He would be drunk and crying when he told me. I guess he had to confide in someone, sometimes.

He was never proud of having to kill. He never ran down enemy soldiers either. Most WWII vets that I met (and I met quite a few) seemed to have that attitude. It's why I have neither heroized or demonized soldiers. Most are just regular people, forced into horrible circumstances. It often does great psychological damage, even to the supposed victors. That's the pity of war.

[StarsInHerHair]

25. but the atmosphere was absolutely different from civilian life

when the uniform comes off.......it's not the same as serial killers, those do it on their own. Snipers are following command.

[daleo]

7. It did a lot of damage to WW1 soldiers

Read the novel "Three Day Road" for a literary treatment of this.

[cliffordu]

17. Well....

BWAHA hahahHA HAHhAhahahh HAHAHHAHAHa.

Apparently you know nothing about this subject.

[PavePusher]

34. They are not "kids".

They are all over 18, most probably over 21, as they don't generally train fresh-out-o-basic troops as snipers. You need some field seasoning first.

The rest of your post is thinly veiled filthy accusation. Stop it.

[pscot]

45. Horseshit

I'm not accusing anyone of anything, thin or otherwise. I wondered about the long-term emotional toll on the young men who do it. Do you really think it's okay to ask people to do this in our name and not even consider the emotional or ethical ramifications? That's monstrous.

[PavePusher]

46. "This is the very definition of a serial killer, government sanction or no."

"One could probably make a case for war crimes as well."

Accusations, yes?

Or are you recusing yourself?

[Bigmack]

10. I just know my mom and the nuns...

who taught me in school would have been pleased when i got my first confirmed kill.

Somehow, I didn't get around to telling them.

I think people with bumper-stickers like that are chickenhawk assholes who never held-and-squeezed on another human being.

[w8liftinglady]

11. I think you are absolutely right.

My partner,as an MP in several Vietnam/Cambodia locations,and my son,through his three tours in Iraq...both had confirmed kills...neither will talk about it..."it was just part of the job".
It f%cking eats them alive inside.
It is war.

[frylock]

12. word up

[Swamp Rat]

13. Amen!!

!

[Marr]

14. Gott mit uns.

The loons are always the same.

[GSLevel9]

16. just curious...

how are you connecting a Wehrmacht WW2 motto to a bumpersticker for someone who has a hard-on for snipers?

[Marr]

21. They both think certain murders are blessed by god, that's how.

[Township75]

29. Where does God come into this?

I keep hearing God has blessed this, but the only people bringing God into the subject are people like you. What did the bumper sticker say about God, because according to the OP God wasn't listed in the phrase.

[Marr]

31. You don't see where "God" comes into the phrase, "God bless"?

I don't know what to tell you.

[cherokeeprogressive]

40. "God" bless the troops... You missed that?

[galileoreloaded]

15. Its a Larue Tactical sticker most likely.... n/t

[darkstar3]

18. Could be the spouse/sibling/parent of a sniper.

I've seen a lot of bumper stickers like that, sported even by people who probably should know better. It's all about misguided pride and support for a military family member.

[Zax2me]

19. LOL, yea....

But unlikely!

[Recursion]

28. Why unlikely?

I've seen that bumper sticker before, on my friend's (the scout on a scout sniper team) mom's car.

[redwitch]

42. Could be someone who is still alive because of a sniper. nt

[NuclearDem]

20. Most of those assholes I see using bumper stickers like that

Are people who never deployed to the frontline. People who got so caught up in Call of Duty that they never realized how much war fucks people's minds over.

Seriously, unless the 101st Chairborne wants to get in the fight and sacrifice their own lives, will they shut the FUCK up about supporting war?

[Marr]

22. I suspect this was actually a sly reference to political assassination.

[Recursion]

27. I suspect the driver's kid is a sniper, myself (nt)

[The Midway Rebel]

37. +1

They think they are so subversive and clever.

If that event that they pray for happens, they and their ilk had better stay out of my sights.

[Maru Kitteh]

23. My SIL joined the Army due to poor employment prospects.

I love him like he was my own.

I supported his decision to go in even though I knew it wasn't probably the best reason to sign up. His intentions were noble. He wanted to gain an education that would help them form a better life.

He is now pursuing every possible avenue to leave.

He's home now - here, with us - and by coincidence we are nurturing 4 baby kittens we found abandoned in the alley. To hear him in the kitten's room, laughing and talking to the kittens was probably one of the most uplifting and wonderful things I have heard for ages.

[Hawkowl]

24. Animals heal

Sometimes we think we are rescuing animals, when they are actually rescuing us!

[Recursion]

26. Snipers save lives (nt)

[Paladin]

30. I See Our Unpleasant Batch Of Sniper-Worshipers Is Present.

You guys need to find yourselves a new obsession, because this one is really old. Do snipers serve a useful, limited function in warfare? Yes. Are their exploits worthy of such drooling admiration? Not in a site such as this.

[PavePusher]

36. I don't see this "drooling admiration" you speak of.

Respect for those good at a difficult, dangerous, neccesary job, yes.

[Paladin]

39. Google The Word "Snipers".....

...and take a look at the sort of sites that pop up---strictly death junkie stuff, which I believe has no place here at DU. I felt the same way back in late 2002 and early 2003, when our resident sniper worshipers kept up a stomach-turning speculation about how many more bodies the D.C. snipers could have stacked up, if they'd only been using a Really Cool Sniper Rifle (instead of a pissy little .223). I repeat: I believe that snipers have a limited, legitimate role in military and law enforcement operations. But when the camo-clad wannabes and computer game shooter types get into the mix, it's just not healthy....

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

35. "Killing is fun" Quoth the general.

“Eternal boyhood is the dream of a depressing percentage of American males, and the locker room is the temple where they worship arrested development.“ Russell Baker

[Cid_B]

38. What a snobby elitist quote that is....

Holier than thou coming out of every orifice.... Sheesh...

Bet this guy is a real hoot at parties.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

41. You're referring to the murderous general Mattis, I presume.