https://archive.ph/2x19K#selection-105.0-109.329

"Things have changed in the decades after the inflation of the armed forces through conscription during the Vietnam “war” (read: Genocide) and the subsequent defeat and deflation. In the transition to a primarily volunteer force, something counterintuitive to the first-worldist left occurred. The first-worldist left expected the military to be utilized as some kind of refuge for the poor periphery of the united $tates population. However that is not what happened. Especially in the decade after 9/11, the military has transitioned into a gun club for amerikkka’s wide-eyed middle class sons. The imperialist volunteer vengeance force that was raised to fight international “terrorism” in the Muslim countries of Iraq and Afghanistan (as well as those who were trained to rain missiles on a dozen more) were less and less the victims of a “poverty draft” which had been imagined into existence by those who remembered the inequities of conscription and service in the 1960s."

"This has been documented by the neo-conservative Heritage Foundation in their study on the recruitment demographics of the united $tates military, which found that only about 10-11% of the united $tates military recruits come from the poorest quintile (defined as making less than $33,000 annually), with a fourth of the military coming from areas whose median income is more than $65,000 annually."

Secondly, whatever cruel behaviour exhibited by US soldiers is not simply a byproduct of inherent individual traits of the soldier, but are systemic.

Systemic to settler-colonies and their settler ilk who spawn these demons ready to do whatever in honor and service of their Reich. I think a lot of leftists don't reckon with the fact that there is a inherent, evil culture that is built off of "Settlerism":, spiritual Calvinism and Christianity that has systematically genocided anything in it's path to maintain it's existence.

Most soldiers aren't "victims"; they were patriotic and rearing to kill people overseas to maintain the existence of their Empire. It's like saying Israeli soldiers are "victims" when in reality both American and Israeli culture are entirely built upon the act of "excising" compassion and empathy. The military just simply teaches you how to weaponize it. As the archive says, only 11 percent of them at most come from "poorer backgrounds"; it isn't Vietnam where they are drafting along ethnic lines, amongst class lines, etc and you could argue genuinely that they didn't want to have to do anything and could genuinely appreciate their attempts to resist/dodge drafts or frag or what-not.

I don't disagree with you that suicide and unemployment is a crippling problem amongst veterans when they get home. But the ones you see that really struggle are a chunk of that 11% or the few thousand more who lost support of their families. Most do very well for themselves and still come from "better-off" families. At least "not in poverty".

I think this is why it's such a tough question to really think about because if you meet a lot of soldiers, to them, they have little reason or care to justify or tell you why what they did was justified. For me it was a lot of "You wouldn't understand." "They're the enemy, it's that simple" etc.

Sometimes, I wonder if surviving Nazi soldiers had the same kind of thought-process after the war.