O’Neal’s feelings towards his actions reflect a broader moral conflict in warfare.
Evidence
O’Neal has this closing thought: “When I think of my future, when I think of someday—though I’m not married, I intend to be—when my son asks me what I did in Korea, how can I tell him that I came over here and dropped germ bombs on people, destroying them, bringing death and destruction? How can I go back and face my family in a civilized world? How can I tell them these things, that I—I am a criminal in the eyes of humanity? They’re my flesh and blood. It’s the most difficult thing, to really give a man’s feelings a vocal expression. I can’t try, I can only tell you somewhat of how I feel.” — Nicholson Baker, Baseless- My Search for Secrets in the…, 945
Categorization
- SEED: O’Neal’s reflections prompt further investigation into historical perspectives of soldiers involved in unethical warfare.
- corroborated: 3 independent passages support this claim — Nicholson Baker, Baseless- My Search for Secrets in the…, 945
- XREF: connects to: Moral philosophy is now being deployed to facilitate war; A combatant’s weapon defines the moral essence of who they become