On Killing by LtCol Dave Grossman, 2009, Excerpts
The closer the soldier draws to his
enemy the harder it is to kill him, until at bayonet range it can be extremely
difficult, and the average human being has a strong resistance to piercing the
body of another of his own kind with a handheld edged weapon, preferring to
club or slash the enemy than a piercing blow. To pierce is to penetrate into
the enemy’s essence.
A stroke with the edges seldom
kills, as the vital parts of the body are defended by the bones and armor. On
the contrary, a stab, though it penetrates but two inches, is generally fatal.
The Romans had a serious problem with their soldiers not wanting to use
piercing blows. They were likewise taught not to cut but to thrust with their
swords.
When a man bayonets a person who is
facing him, the “sobbing scream,” the blood shooting out of his mouth, and his
eyes bulging out “like prawns” are all part of the memory the killer must carry
forever. The resistance to killing with the bayonet is equal only the enemy’s
horror at having this done to him. It is no wonder that actual bayonet combat
is extremely rare in military history. Soldiers who would bravely face a hail
of bullets will consistently flee before a determined individual with cold steel
in his hands. When the bayonet is used, the close range at which the work is
done results in a situation with enormous potential for psychological trauma.
French Bayonet Charge WWI
Third
Presidential Debate
22 Oct 2012
Obama:
You mentioned the Navy, for example, and that we
have fewer ships than we did in 1916.
Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets, because the
nature of our military has changed.
Army
drops bayonets, revamps training
16 Mar 2010
FORT
JACKSON, S.C. — New soldiers are grunting through the kind of stretches and
twists found in “ab blaster” classes at suburban gyms as the Army revamps its
basic training regimen for the first time in three decades. Heeding the advice
of Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans, commanders are dropping five-mile runs
and bayonet drills in favor of zigzag sprints and exercises that hone core
muscles. Battlefield sergeants say that’s the kind of fitness needed to dodge
across alleys, walk patrol with heavy packs and body armor or haul a buddy out
of a burning vehicle.
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