A former combat veteran warns that Defense Secretary Hegseth's push to turn troops into merciless killers is bad for soldiers and for the society they return to.

• Soldiers want to do their jobs and come home to normal lives, not be trained to kill without mercy.
• Troops drilled to show no mercy will struggle to fit back into civilian life, a cost Hegseth is ignoring.
• Hegseth's tough, masculine image was meant to boost recruiting after the Biden years, which many young men saw as weak and overly focused on "woke" policies.
• That appeal is fading because troops are being sent to bomb people with no clear purpose behind the brutality.
• Hegseth's dismissive talk about rules of engagement and the Geneva Convention adds to the worry.

Outlook: Expect growing pushback from veterans and troops if the Pentagon keeps pushing "no mercy" rhetoric without a clear mission behind it.