A Matter of Conscience

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sharra1 and I have recently been watching a series on DVD called "Wallader". It is a remake of an earlier Swedish series, this one also set in Ystad, Sweden, and stars that magnificent classical British actor Kenneth Branagh, directed by an Emmy winner, and the supporting cast contains most of the best of British charactor actors. I'm telling you all this so you get the background to the actual subject of the discussion. Wallander is a senior detective in the provincial city of Ystad. It's no Sodom and Gomorrah, and the character is an honest and genuinely good person, who also happens to be a workaholic and terrible at relationshiips. Branagh is head and shoulders above most modern actors who play detectives: none of the world-weary cynicism of an Eastwood, nor the psychotic glee of that POS Gibson, and the story lines are believable, the acting terrific, the scripting great, the photography and directing wonderful, and not a Hollywood stuntman in sight. In other words, it is realistic police drama. In the second last episode we watched, Wallander was forced to kill a man for the first time, in the line of duty and in self-defence against lethal force, a "righteous" shooting. Neverthless, being the man he is, the remorse throws him into a six month massive depression, and this set me to thinking. I can't imagine being put into such a situation, and I'm sure I would hesitate (as did Wallander) before killing the man, but if my life, or my family's lives, or even a stranger's by some weapon wielding maniac, if I could do it I would. What I wonder is, would I then suffer the enormous pangs of conscience that Wallander did? I don't think I would, but we never know what will happen in such traumatic circumstances. I think I would very quickly rationalise (quite appropriately) what had happened and take no blame on myself, and just suffer regret that I was forced to kill somebody. I don't actually fully comprehend the fascination so many people have with the sanctity of life, perhaps because I am not religious in the least. How do you think you would react? Lash