Originally Posted by
mcantar18c
Actually, no. That was all from S. A. Marshall, Ben Shalit, Ardant du Picq, and others, and Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's studies that put everything together. Those numbers are real... almost unbelievable, until you dig deeper and understand the psychology and human nature behind it. Pretty interesting, eye opening stuff. You should check out Grossman's books "On Killing" and "On Combat."
The scary thing is that media violence (graphic video games, slasher movies, etc.) are desensitizing our society as a whole to violence and killing, removing the "safety catch." Without this safety catch its just a matter of having the right combination of external factors and bam, Johnny will kill. Take a fresh young gangbanger facing their initiation... they've been desensitized and conditioned by media and society and no longer have a very strong safety catch. Then the external factors of an authority figure making a strong demand for them to kill (the gang leader they're trying to impress), group anonymity and accountability (as opposed to individual responsibility), creating distance between them and their target (dehumanizing them or demoralizing their cause) and other factors all come together like the perfect storm to enable him to make that first kill.