Some researchers are convinced that members of elite or special forces possess significant psychopathic predispositions. For example, as Kevin Dutton writes in his book “The Wisdom of Psychopaths,” selection for the SAS (UK Special Air Service) is brutal and savage. He cites one of the selection stages where a person, already exhausted by other trials, has a bag placed over their head, after which a truck drives up close to them and simulates a situation in which there is an alleged threat that their head might be accidentally run over. During such tests, candidates are specifically screened for qualities inherent to psychopaths. Individuals with these qualities are useful because they are capable of killing easily, without feeling even the slightest regret. Meanwhile, for a person without them, even mere participation in such selection would likely haunt their nightmares for a very long time.
One can also refer to an article by journalist Courtney Werleman. While in Israel and the Palestinian territories, he wanted to find out what psychological impact the first experience of killing at close range has on a soldier. And although for a number of reasons his study was never written, based on the evidence collected and materials from other researchers, he concludes that members of elite or special forces are “high-functioning” psychopaths.
Werleman gives an example of his communication with a former member of the US “Delta” special forces, who recounted that in Afghanistan he stabbed a 14-year-old boy, grabbing him and covering his mouth so that he would not make noise and disrupt the operation. When asked about his feelings afterward, he replied that he felt no regret because “it’s war and the operation was successful.” And judging by leaks of secret materials, such killings of civilians were not unusual for American special forces. One can also cite the example of special forces from Australia who, while in Afghanistan, openly demonstrated Nazi views and drove a patrol vehicle with a swastika. Of course, a person’s views are one thing, but killing innocent people who are not involved in hostilities and pose no threat to you is quite another. But as revealed by the leak of secret documents from the Australian Defence Force, the views of their special forces members corresponded to their actions—they deliberately killed unarmed men, women, and children, and then left weapons on their bodies to cover up their crimes.
Werleman also raises the topic of tyrannical and authoritarian regimes. Referring to the works of Professor Timothy Snyder, he notes that it is precisely people accustomed to committing violence abroad that such regimes later recruit to commit violence against the population within the country. Militarized formations consisting of psychopaths can be used, for example, for the brutal suppression of those protesting against corrupt authorities. It should be noted here that a “culture of impunity” is very common in such formations, and they treat the civilian population with complete cold-bloodedness.
The existence of such a problem once again raises the question of how we should view cold-blooded, heartless, and ruthless individuals capable of easily harming others—that is, individuals with a clear dysfunction of the violence inhibition mechanism and psychopathic predispositions. Obviously, they represent an incredibly high danger to society. People with malevolent intentions, such as corrupt politicians, can use them to carry out violence against ordinary, innocent people as efficiently as possible. This shows once again that we must unequivocally treat such a state of the individual as a pathology and a disease that must be eradicated.
