@Val123 I really do understand your point, and especially if the war is in full swing when you sign up you should expect you might wind up on that front I guess? I have no problem with Muslim and Arab Americans being in our military and fighting for our country, but if they have deep psychological problems with fighting against someone that could easily be a family member I kind of empathize. Maybe when they join up they aren’t sure how they are going to really feel in the situation, many are 18, 19, and 20 when they join. The Psychiatrist at Ft Hood asked not to go, seemed he knew he was losing control, I think we should have at minimum sent him to a counselor to try and get more in touch with what was going on in his head.
As far as WWII your point is good, I have thought of that example as well. I think if a German soldier felt he could not fight against or kill other Germans he should be assigned to the Japanese front.
There was a MASH episode years ago about this. A Chinese American was having a nervous breakdown, because he had to fight against the Chinese who were allied with North Korea. He was a loyal American, but traumatized about killing people from his national background and ethnicity.
The young people I know who have joined up in the last 5 or 6 years talked about how they were going to be able to travel and eventually go to school, or get trained in a trade they were interested in. None of them talked about seeing battle, and when I asked if they were nervous about the fact that we are in a time of war, they all said no. I am only talking about 4 people here, not a large sample, but it does make me think that many young people don’t think the whole thing through, and all were having trouble securing jobs, the military was more of a job opportunity for them.