A Rumor Of War

by Philip Caputo

War is always attractive to young men who know nothing about it,

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Most of all, we learned about death at an age when it is common to think of oneself as immortal.

The horror lay in the recognition that the body, which is supposed to be the earthly home of an immortal soul, which people spend so much time feeding, conditioning, and beautifying, is in fact only a fragile case stuffed full of disgusting matter.

Before you leave here, sir, you’re going to learn that one of the most brutal things in the world is your average nineteen-year-old American boy.”

Then the sniper centered the cross hairs on his telescopic sight, and all that Sullivan had ever been or would ever be, all of his thoughts, memories, and dreams were annihilated in an instant.

They dealt with the enemy threat by ignoring it,