tsst
Deuce is watching!
Yep two sides of the same coin. I understand your point and we are spliting hairs. I just don't see a US soldier strapping on a bomb in Iraq, walking into cafe and blowing himself up to kill 20 people. That to me is an emotional and thus less stable decision.Two sides of the same coin. Look at all the horror stories that came out of Vietnam. Suicide bombers definitely see themselves as soldiers and soldiers are capable of committing atrocities just like the rest of us.
People using God or Country to justify their actions are doing the same thing. If you can rationalize your behavior as being for the 'greater good', whatever that good may be, then you're willing to do just about anything.
Atrocities are commited in all wars for sure. Some in Vietnam commited atrocities, but were probably more along the lines of shooting people they should not have.
To me one is still more calculated and thought driven and the other more emotional. I would venture the emotional decision is a less stable one, though the difference maybe slight in extreme cases.
I guess one could argue the terrorist leaders are not quite as emotional as those they recruit in the name of Allah. Otherwise we would not be hunting Osama, he would eventually strap on the bomb himself.