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The tragedy of the sniper

Posted July. 11, 2016 07:26,   

Updated July. 11, 2016 07:29

한국어

“Going on a snipe hunt” means making efforts that end up in vain or doing something impossible. The snipe is quick and flies in an unpredicted way so that it is hart to hunt one. A sniper means a professional hunter who can shoot such bird. In the military, a few marksmen can become snipers after many hours of arduous training.

Snipers never waste bullets. Their motto is "one shot, one kill." Though the number might vary depending on how to count, an analysis shows that an average U.S. soldier used 200,000 bullets and a sniper used only 1.3 bullets during the Vietnam War. In battlefields bombarded with shells and bullets, a sniper’s one shot from somewhere can be a lethal threat.

There are records among snipers who take away lives. Simo Häyhä, a Finnish defense force, set the lowest record of killing only 542 lives without using a telescopic sight when his country was invaded by the Soviet Union in 1939. Chris Kyle, a former sniper of the U.S. Marine Corps Special Forces, killed 160 people officially during the Iraq War and 255 unofficially. His autobiography is based on the movie “American Sniper.” However, a Soviet soldier’s bullet penetrated Häyhä’s left chin, losing part of his face. While training shooting in 2013, he was shot by a former marine soldier with PTSD. The end of snipers seems tragic.

Twelve policemen were shot and five of them were killed during the peace protest against the killings of black men by white policemen in Dallas, Texas, on Thursday. While gunfire is seen sometimes in the U.S., sniper attacks are unprecedented. A sniper attack implies that the sniper intends to kill a specific person. The severe racial conflict combined with the right to keep arms has led to a tragedy in the U.S.



한기흥기자 eligius@donga.com