A question for combat veterans.

[Rooskibar03]

I got the feeling he made the right move however some of the comments othe story were leaning towards a bad move, likely by people who have no experience either.

Just so it's clear I have no desire to questions his actions. Simply looking for an understanding of the combat mindset that those of us who haven't served simply don't have.

If he is a team leader then he is doing his job. His priorities are 1) the mission, 2) his men, and 3) himself. It is simply doing what is necessary to get his team/friends back home to their families. Moving to a position with poor cover was just a bad decision made on the fly and under fire and should not be armchair quarterbacked by anyone who hasn't experienced the same. Good initiative, bad judgement (use of cover). He is a young NCO and this experience will help him become a better leader. You can always teach someone to use cover more effectively, you can't teach someone the concept of self sacrafice. He did the right thing.

[SuperiorDG]

I can't imagine what this guy is going through, but I wonder how he runs so well with balls that big.

[275RLTW]

I got the feeling he made the right move however some of the comments othe story were leaning towards a bad move, likely by people who have no experience either.

Just so it's clear I have no desire to questions his actions. Simply looking for an understanding of the combat mindset that those of us who haven't served simply don't have.

No sweat, I didn't interpret your post as a question of his actions. He was simply doing what he swore he would do and doing it under the most intense and chaotic of conditions. Understanding that mindset completely is difficult to do without 1st hand experience however I can almost guarantee this: he did not have to think about whether or not it was the right decision....there was no decision about it. He just did it because he knew it had to be done. That's not a mindset developed by any classes; it's a result of his character.