Mattis Named To Command U.S. Forces In Iraq, Afghan Wars - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty © 2010

Mattis Named To Command U.S. Forces In Iraq, Afghan Wars - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty © 2010

In 2005, Mattis was reprimanded by the Marine Corps for telling a conference in San Diego, California: "It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up front with you, I like brawling."

"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil," Mattis said during a panel discussion. "You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them."
Gates said on July 8 that appropriate action had been taken at the time. He added that "the subsequent five years have demonstrated that the lesson was learned.

Lesson learned? Meaning that it is not fun to shoot them or that it is not smart to admit it? I hope it is the latter. Nothing so well illustrates the problem our society faces in fighting a war than our horror at the idea that some of the men fighting the war might actually enjoy killing their enemies.