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If you fire a gun at someone, you should be actively trying to kill them, as that is the most reliable way of stopping them (ie center-of-mass, a definite attempt to kill, but used because it produces the most reliable stops). Legally speaking, you are only allowed to use a firearm if you are threatened with deadly force (in most states). If you are trying to shoot to wound, you may find yourself facing legal repercussions simply because you were obviously not under so much threat that you could take the time to make a more difficult shot in the attempt to disable.
I have no desire to shoot any human being. I have owned guns all my life and am proud to say that I have never used one in anger, and only very rarely in fear (rattlesnakes gotta go). Never want to. I know what my conscience is like and I do not trust in my ability to rationalize away the karma that mgiht be accrued from putting a bullet in someone, thus I do not treat the subject lightly. As a result, my personal guideline is to never pull a weapon unless the target needs killing to save a life, be it me or mine.
That said, America does have a warrior culture. George Washington exemplified it with his use of the nom de guerre "Cincinnatus" during the pre-Revolution phase. He was the eternal citizen soldier, reluctant to take up arms and anxious to return home and lay them back down. America culturally prefers peace, and the modern soldier also shows that in his burning desire to come home and do so through the wreckage of his enemy if need be.
To quote Patton, "Sure, we want to go home. We want this war over with. The quickest way to get it over with is to go get the b*stards who started it. The quicker they are whipped, the quicker we can go home. The shortest way home is through Berlin and Tokyo. And when we get to Berlin, I am personally going to shoot that paper hanging son-of-a-b*tch Hitler just like I'd shoot a snake".
Deadly force is used as strongly and quickly as we can muster it simply because we want the war over and Our Boys (and Girls) home ASAP. Americans tend to carry this into non-military engagements as well. That's topic for another post though.
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