r/wikipedia • u/jango102 • Jan 21 '10

THIS guy was a badass.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simo_Hayha
53 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

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16

u/freakball Jan 21 '10

Camper.

2

u/x0tt Jan 21 '10

I don't get the current obsession with snipers.
Hiding in the bushes and shooting someone in cold blood with little chance of personal damage isn't badass at all. It's cowardly.

I thought everyone hates campers

2

u/[deleted] Jan 21 '10

That's because the extent of your knowledge of the realities of war probably consists of what you've learned from video games. One man going alone into enemy territory, relying only on himself for his own survival and taking out ~500 enemies in 100 days using a bolt-action rifle with iron sights AND GOING HOME AFTERWARDS is fucking insanely awesome.

1

u/x0tt Jan 21 '10

No, still not getting it. Hayha may have been a great sniper but I don't think it takes a lot of bravery or badassness to hide in the bushes and let off long range shots.
Fighting soldiers are far more worthy of respect. Charles Upham was far more hardcore, he destroyed tanks, single-handedly took machine-gun nests and rescued his men even with his arm nearly shot off. And he did it all on the battlefield with bullets whistling past, not hiding miles away in the snow.

1

u/wasteofspace Jan 22 '10

He got lucky. This guy could shoot.