War’s hell, but “fun”

San Diego

A Marine general, James Mattis, caused an uproar last week when he told a San Diego audience that it was “fun” to shoot people. “You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn’t wear a veil,” Mattis said. “Guys like that ain’t got no manhood left anyway. So it’s a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them.” The Marine Corps commandant, Gen. Mike Hagee, apologized for the comments, but said they reflected the “harsh realities of war.” Nihad Awad of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said Mattis should be disciplined. “We do not need generals who treat the grim business of war as a sporting event,” he said.

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