Safe Internet Shopping - On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society

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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 355 EAN: 9780316040938 ISBN: 0316040932 Label: Back Bay Books Manufacturer: Back Bay Books Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 416 Publication Date: 2009-06-22 Publisher: Back Bay Books Studio: Back Bay Books
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Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: Outstanding Comment: Buy it without hesitation. This is a seminal work. It should be mandatory reading for every law enforcement person if they're serious about truly beginning to understand their work environment. Customer Rating: Summary: An eye opening read Comment: Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's On Killing is a phenominal work. It serves to blatantly scrutinize one of our society's biggest blind spots and social taboos: killing. Everything our society thinks it knows about wartime combat is fundamentally flawed; our conception of the righteous (or less so) soldier wading through battle without thought of the lives he takes is a lie. One of the most interesting points is the exploration of firing rates in historical wars and man's natural reluctance to kill, which apparently supercedes the urge of self-preservation or societal pressures. Those that enjoyed the book Ishmael may find a similar vein in this work (in the way that it explores facets of civilization that we turn a blind eye to conciously or unconciously), which strives to explain information vital to the survival of our society as well as the psychological well-being of our soldiers, however uncomfortable that subject may be. An all around fascinating book that "blew my mind". I reccomend this book for anyone with even a passing interest in psychology or combat, and it is definately a MUST READ for anyone working in the field of Veteran's Affairs. Customer Rating: Summary: on combat Comment: I liked the book. I aspired to be come a marine back in the early 80's after finishing college. I talked with some former viet-nam vets who convinced me that graduate school was a better option. I followed their advice based on the stories they told me...this book is a very good testimony of some of their experiences. now at 49 I wish I had become a marine anyway when I had the chance. I personally was'nt aware of the fact that many soldiers on both sides never used their weapons and I side with the author's view point on peace before war but we must always be prepared to defend the constitution of the United States if necessary. never the less the book is a very good study of the human psyche and of the limits of human endurance.... Customer Rating: Summary: Must read for the military or police. Comment: This book, as many have stated, is great for understanding the psychology of someone returning from the battlefield. But for those who have yet to enter the battlefield, or will shortly find themselves returning, I suggest they read On Combat. That book deals much more with the subject of the physiology and psychology of the act of combat itself and how to prepare for it, rather than how to recognize and deal with it after the fact. Customer Rating: Summary: Good but the second book is much better Comment: This is a very good book but pales in comparison to Col. Grossman's second book on combat. This book has a lot of data a is a little dry reading. However, the data is excellent and this book contains great information. More Reviews
Editorial Reviews: The good news is that most soldiers are loath to kill. But armies have developed sophisticated ways of overcoming this instinctive aversion. And contemporary civilian society, particularly the media, replicates the army's conditioning techniques, and, according to Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's thesis, is responsible for our rising rate of murder among the young. Upon its initial publication, ON KILLING was hailed as a landmark study of the techniques the military uses to overcome the powerful reluctance to kill, of how killing affects soldiers, and of the societal implications of escalating violence. Now, Grossman has updated this classic work to include information on 21st-century military conflicts, recent trends in crime, suicide bombings, school shootings, and more. The result is a work certain to be relevant and important for decades to come.