Puppy Abuse

[DeadPoolX 9]

I'm sorry you have to live with having done that, and I hope you know that there is help out there for you.

Something has made you think it's reasonable that the guy hurt and killed an animal. That something, apparently, is that you have been so traumatized by military experience that you feel it could justify anything.

I really hope you can find peace and get some help for the burden you are carrying. You don't have to wait until Judgment Day, you know.

Alex, I don't believe he claimed to find the act of torturing or killing defenseless animals as "reasonable." From what I gathered, he said he could "understand" why the marines in question would do such a thing. It is possible to show empathy for someone without necessarily agreeing with that person.

For instance... I can "understand" why terrorist factions feel the way they do and pursue their goals. Do I agree with their ideals and what they wish to accomplish? Not at all. I'd like to see each and every one of them ground into the pavement for threatening this country, but the point remains I can still look at the situation from their point-of-view.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Perhaps - but it didn't really read that way. It sounded as though he was suggesting that dropping live/dead animals off a cliff was somehow justifiable - as a means "blowing off some pent up aggression" for someone who has been through a traumatic experience.

You don't blow off steam by torturing animals - you see a psychiatrist. Urgently.

Personally, I find it difficult to believe that a person could believe this. It wouldn't be a bad idea to clarify the statement.

Edited March 6, 2008 by Number 6

[almaty 19]

You don't blow off steam by torturing animals - you see a psychiatrist. Urgently

true, a sign of a sociopath....

[Jon-n-Michelle 0]

Our government puts them in the position to to become "sociopaths". When they are done with them, they turn their backs on them. They don't care if they have created a monster. Why would he go see a psychiatrist?? A sociopath doesn't know that he is disturbed. Everything they do is justified in their warped version of reality. I'm not condoning the Marines actions, I just understand the circumstance that created it more than most people here do. He should be court-martialed, and be given the mental care he needs. I guarantee that he will get the former and not the latter though. Thats just the way UCMJ works. He'll probably be worse if he gets sentenced to hard labor time.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Our government puts them in the position to to become "sociopaths". When they are done with them, they turn their backs on them. They don't care if they have created a monster. Why would he go see a psychiatrist?? A sociopath doesn't know that he is disturbed. Everything they do is justified in their warped version of reality. I'm not condoning the Marines actions, I just understand the circumstance that created it more than most people here do. He should be court-martialed, and be given the mental care he needs. I guarantee that he will get the former and not the latter though. Thats just the way UCMJ works. He'll probably be worse if he gets sentenced to hard labor time.

Probably right - providing quality mental healthcare has never been taken particularly seriously outside the military. No surprise that the same applies to those within.

[Ban Hammer 13,657]

He should be court-martialed, and be given the mental care he needs. I guarantee that he will get the former and not the latter though. Thats just the way UCMJ works. He'll probably be worse if he gets sentenced to hard labor time.

i disagree. an article 15 would fit the bill here.

[jundp 191]

Our government puts them in the position to to become "sociopaths". When they are done with them, they turn their backs on them. They don't care if they have created a monster. Why would he go see a psychiatrist?? A sociopath doesn't know that he is disturbed. Everything they do is justified in their warped version of reality. I'm not condoning the Marines actions, I just understand the circumstance that created it more than most people here do. He should be court-martialed, and be given the mental care he needs. I guarantee that he will get the former and not the latter though. Thats just the way UCMJ works. He'll probably be worse if he gets sentenced to hard labor time.

I agree with your statements, Jon. I don't agree with the behavior and it saddens and sickens me, but I am the daughter of a man who did 3 tours in Vietnam. While he was able to deal with the stress and the horror from his time there, he had friends who were not successful in this endeavor and he was always very clear to teach us children about the horrors of war and what it does to people. He didn't ever fully share his experiences, but he wanted us to know that it was our job to be empathetic to those who had suffered for their country.

It's appalling to me that we send young men and women to these conditions and then drop them upon their returns. How many Vietnam war veterans became homeless or unable to funciton normally in society because of their experiences? Yet they were fully ignored by the very government who demanded such a price from them.

That doesn't excuse this behavior and it's possible that this guy and his friends are just plain evil. It may have nothing to do with the war, they could have been that way before. But we have to remember the layers to the story and that what we see in a video doesn't always explain everything.

As a note: I do NOT condone this behavior, as anyone who has read my stance on torture/human/animal rights will now.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

What gets me here is that the guy was not alone - and noone in the video seemed to see any problem with him, what he did - or indeed filming it and putting it online.

I'm sceptical about whether that's battle fatigue, PTSD or what have you. My (albeit limited) understanding of the phenomena doesn't include this kind of behaviour - and its bad dreams, flashbacks and mood swings (sometimes violent) and/or suicidal tendencies that are the usual pathology.

This doesn't seem to fit that bill at all... and it doesn't need to be pointed out that there are people who do and have done this kind of thing without having served in the armed forces at all.

Edited March 6, 2008 by Number 6

[Sinergy 3]

You ask people to kill other people and then are surprised when they torture animals? I know lots of soldiers are good people, but a lot of soliders also return home pretty disturbed. It's not surprising to me that stuff like this happens.

i agree with you 100%