could you kill?

[the_gelf]

Originally Posted by cyclist

I don't think that I could.

By the time the decision is being made, the enemy soldier would be a prisoner of war, which as others have pointed out have to be treated in certain ways.

As others have also pointed out, I suspect that I could kill to save myself, or possibly if my loved ones were at risk, but in open cold blood like that, no.

James

I do not think Geneva convention takes place above your own wellbeing when behind enemy lines.

Why the hell can't I just knock the guy out, or bleed him a little so he passes out.

Why do I as a soldier, not have a medic nearby packing morphine?

[Freedom of Thought]

From those 2 choices, surrender for me.

[Xeno]

Originally Posted by Freedom of Thought

From those 2 choices, surrender for me.

I was wondering why I had missed any earlier opportunities.

[Worldslaziestbusker]

Originally Posted by Xeno

I was wondering why I had missed any earlier opportunities.

I like to think I would have sufficient courage to run from conscription, but at twice the age at which my father, the most pacific man I know, accepted his draft, I don't know I can state categorically that I would run in the same situation.
He hasn't told me much about actual combat, but a lot about how an army does what it does through a mixture of psychological manipulation and shouting. Conscription seems to work in the same way, with community and familial obligations outweighing the impulse to shie from a path you think abominable. Or to save your own sorry ass from doing your patriotic duty, as some would have it.
Tim O'Brien's short story "On the Rainy River" is the best explanation I have come across to date as to why more people don't run from a draft. It takes greater courage and resolve to leave everyone you care about behind you than it does to go to war.

[bruce1937]

Could I kill given the right circumstances? I think so, but it may be a different story in reality.
Would I kill in the scenario outlined? No.

[c2105026]

Could I kill? Yes. Absolutely. Would I in the situation presented? Probably not - I'd take the prisoner with me as a hostage, handcuffed and gagged.

[MikeJay]

The scenario posed does not actually offer a choice, a rational individual does not accept their own death (surrender, discovery) as a choice. The question although phrased as though there are two options really only offers one.