War films. In the past month alone I've watched about 3 to 4 war films already. I like war films, all the fighting, all the tactics, all the running here and there, all the emotions. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a big fan of gory stuff, you can ask my friends and they'd tell you that I'm the wimp-ass fella that refuses to watch horror and thrillers. But there's just something about war films that I love. Maybe its that it lets me imagine myself as one of them, the heros fighting with honour and bravery and courage and whatever else thats usually portrayed in the films. It does wrench my heart when I see those sad faces, the lost faces that seem make the characters seem unable to dicpher anything that is going on around them. Maybe secretly I actually like to see people fight?

In any case, in recent weeks I've had this question in my head (it came when I was imagining that I was fighting in a war along side my brethern in a muddy field with... errrm.. think I got carried away); What would I do if one of my brothers in arms was suffering immense unimaginable pain from injuries, and help was so far away that I myself would probably be dead before it'd arrive, and he asked me to shoot him in the head so that he won't suffer anymore. What would I do? Would I shoot him? Or tell him to "hang on in there!"? Would it make me any less a murderer if it was mercy killing?

Assuming that I shoot him whilst shattering my own heart, would I be able to sleep at night? How will I answer to his family? Would he have survived, maybe amputated a limb or two, if I had waited for help, or brought him to help?

Assuming that I don't shoot him and he continues to suffer and help doesn't arrive and he dies a slow extremely painful death, would it mean that I let him down as a brother? If he survives and he does get a limb or two amputated and has to live a life of disability which makes him miserable and depressed, would he blame me for not ending his misery then?

Initially I thought that I might just shoot him and let him rest in peace, whilst I bear the burden and guilt of shooting my own brother, but... would it be right?

Would anyone kill me out of mercy if I asked for it?

""Hoot": When I get home people 'll ask me, "Hey Hoot, why do ya do it man? Why? Just some war junkie?" Ya know what I'll say? I won't say a goddamn word. Why? They won't understand. They won't understand why we do it. They won't understand that it's about the men next to you, and that's it. That's all it is."