Oh please, are you sure you aren't a Democrat? I don't have to go to war, I've seen enough historical evidence to support that claim from decent men that have lived through the horrors of war.
Webb's main character might not have been able to control the situation, but he wasn't even repulsed by it. He just sat there wondering, "gee, why did that guy do that?" That's ridiculous. Unless someone has gone insane they are not going to watch a scene like that and treat it non-chalantly. In their thoughts they are going to be repulsed and sickened by the actions and their inability to take action against it.
I'm quite positive I'm not a Democrat. What's that supposed to mean, anyway?
You truly believe you can draw a grand conclusion about how war affects man because you've read about it in books and you've seen it on television and in the movies? Wow. I suppose I should tell my father what he should've experienced in Vietnam because I saw Apocalypse Now and Platoon.