Reply #13: Agreed there for sure.

[sui generis]

My question is, people up to no good don't wander around in an open group in the open without a lot of evidence of weapons.

And soldiers should at least cogitate on that even in the absence of modernized rules of engagement for urban warfare. Without really imminent and apparent danger, what's the chance that I'm making a mistake and shooting a non-combatant dad or brother or son, and what are the consequences of that?

We need thinking soldiers and commanders, precisely because the world is not black and white in any universe. Not to make an excuse but in virtually every history and occupation in every culture and war, being male and alive in the occupation is coequal with being the enemy, and that's clearly still true today, however wrong.