What type of person does it take to be a sniper??

[jazzimov]

24. I think a better question is

what kind of person can they become after they return to civilian life.

Having been in the service (although luckily never having been deployed), I can only tell you what went through my mind as I was shooting at those silhouette targets and imagining if they were real people. It is nothing as you describe, and I can assure you that I have a deep respect for life. I don't even hunt.

I can tell you that to become a sniper, one must have extreme patience - which can be very useful in the civilian workplace. Also, they must be able to do hundreds of calculations in their heads; taking into account distance, multiple wind speeds, rate of descent of the bullet, etc. Also, if they miss on the first shot (as is fairly common) they must be able to make adjustments immediately. These are also traits that can be very useful in the workplace.

The mindset of "once a killer always a killer" is very counter-productive. People can - and constantly do - change.

The government funded by taxpayers honed these people's skills and taught them how to become efficient killers. Once they return to civilian life, shouldn't that same government undo what they did, and teach them how to become constructive members of society? Including understanding what these people have been through and treating them for mental health issues that the government may have inadvertently inflicted on them by exposing them to the horrors of war?

I will not deny that there are some who glorify killing. But they are the minority. And they do not represent the tenets of our military.

If we are to say that we care about people, then we should care about ALL people - even those we have taught to kill in order to save the lives of others.