Justifying war has always been a big problem for hegemonic powers.

In his book “On Killing,” Professor Dave Grossman (a former army Lt. Col. and Army Ranger), studied the psychological effects of killing during America’s “conflicts.”

He learned that few men in America’s wars would enthusiastically kill the enemy.

This was especially true through World Wars One, Two and the Korean War. The U.S. military was acutely aware of this, and stepped up the indoctrination of young soldiers early in the Vietnam war. It was apparent that more aggressive dehumanization of the enemy was necessary. The rationale for the young soldiers to kill was unclear.

Proper psychological conditioning paid off. The enemy became slants and gooks, not human; the percentage of soldiers engaged in killing went up, though psychological damage (PTSD) and suicide also increased for returning soldiers. Today, we see a superlative effort to provide a rationale for killing, not only for the soldiers but also the supporters of the killing.

On Oct. 24 in a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron, Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu used the Old Testament, Samuel (Chapter 15, verse 3), to call the Palestinians the contemporary version of the 10th Century BC ‘Amalek’.

Netanyahu tells Israeli soldiers: “Remember what Amalek has done to you. … Now go and strike Amalek and completely destroy everything that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.” In addition to providing a rationale for killing by the Israelis is to give a rationale for the support coming from the U.S., especially Christian Zionists who’ve been a crucial element in backing Israel’s ethnic cleansing agenda.

What more important justification can there be than that Israel is fighting a holy war commanded by God?

Roy Harvey is a Mayville resident.