War Is a Lyric Experience

The Associated Press obtained emails and military documents showing that American soldiers in Afghanistan posed for photos next to corpses and body parts in the style of the Abu Ghraib scandal. The material is held by the Army and was kept secret because the U.S. government fears the devastating effect it can have on the country’s image. The photos are part of the evidence in a lawsuit against five U.S. soldiers accused of killing three Afghans “for sport.”

The case reinforces the notion that the state of war is viewed by some soldiers as a drug that helps them find a place in the world. The theme was addressed in the award-winning film, “The Hurt Locker” (unfortunately translated as “War on Terror” in Brazil), in which the protagonist cannot live without the excitement of war. It is when facing risk that he feels at home. Those dead on the enemy side exist only as a part of this habitat — so [there is] nothing more logical [to a soldier] than letting oneself be photographed next to them as if they were hunted animals.

Michael Corgan, a professor of international relations at Boston University and a Vietnam veteran, says the photos are considered souvenirs: “They’re proof people are as tough as they say they are … War is the one lyric experience in their lives — by comparison every [one] else is punching a time clock. They revel in it, and they collect memories of it.”