People in the midst of WW II are not really representative of normal life. Yeah, there's a "trolley problem", but there's also a daily or weekly grind where people are ordered to their death on a treadmill (such as the day/night bombing offensive or the North Atlantic Convoys). Let alone the mental and moral costs of ordering (large) offensives, delaying actions, ... I would imagine the civilian and military leadership was inured to the pain and costs of their decisions, if they even felt such things prior to WW II. After WW I, the British, maybe other European countries, were damaged from the costs of the Trenches. Fortunately, this didn't reoccur too often - but it influenced their actions in WW II.<p>Don't know enough modern history to know post-WW II effects, but the loss of money constricted their actions and I'm pretty certain British leadership has not adapted their appetite to their serving size. Again, other European countries might be similar.<p>Perhaps we're seeing the readjustment period from the "winners" of WW II - US and Russia?