Pat Tillman - Hero
This weekend is Memorial Day. A day I'm always reminded about the idea of what makes a "hero".
He, and his brother, become Army Rangers. With several Tours of Duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. One night standing on a rooftop in Iraq, watching bombs drop on civilians, he is quoted as saying "This is one fucking illegal war". Shortly after that, in 2004, he was killed by "Friendly Fire" in Afghanistan. A cover-up ensued including the destruction of evidence, until four weeks after his memorial when the military had to admit the truth to his family and the country. Tillman’s mother blamed Donald Rumsfeld for the cover-up, Bush’s secretary of defense at the time. Tillman did not want a military funeral. He was cremated instead. At his memorial May 3, 2004 (maybe still available on YouTube?) following an official spouting propaganda about "Heaven" and "Service" His brother Richard got up to speak, saying - “Pat’s a fucking champion and always will be. Just make no mistake, he’d want me to say this: He’s not with God. He’s fucking dead. He’s not religious. So thanks for your thoughts, but he’s fucking dead.”
After President Trump bloviated about the NFL kneeling protest - Tillman's wife, and founder of the Tillman Foundation, Marie Tillman issued a statement about the president’s invocation of her late husband’s name. “Pat’s service, along with that of every man and woman’s service, should never be politicized in a way that divides us,” she wrote. “The very action of self-expression and the freedom to speak from one’s heart — no matter those views — is what Pat and so many other Americans have given their lives for. Even if they didn’t always agree with those views. It is my sincere hope that our leaders both understand and learn from the lessons of Pat’s life and death, and also those of so many other brave Americans.” There is an irony in suggesting Tillman’s legacy is somehow desecrated by protests that take place during the national anthem because those protests are said to insult the military, when it was that same military, the NFL’s longtime ally, that did so much actual damage to Tillman’s legacy after his death.
The War in Afghanistan is approaching 20 years - by far the longest war in US history... and it's still going on. Afghanistan was responsible for harboring the terrorist that attacked us.
I noticed that after "9-11" the term "Hero" was cheapened to
include Victims and Good Samaritans. Heroes are those willing sacrifice
their safety, and lives, for strangers. As our Military has always done.
Maybe this Pandemic will remind us of this fact?
If
ya dont know, you should know, about a real hero - Pat Tillman.
Traditionally, going all the way back
to the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, our wars were started by the Rich.
The Poor and Disadvantaged were the ones who fought and died in them.
After "9-11" Tillman walked away from a $3.6 Million Dollar NFL contract with the Arizona Cardinals to fight for America. Tillman enlisted expecting to fight Al Qaeda and bring Osama bin Laden to justice. Instead, he was sent to
Iraq. Tillman loathed the Iraq
War. A voracious reader who consumed many of the world’s great religious
texts even though he considered himself an atheist, Tillman was a
student of history and formed his own opinions.
He, and his brother, become Army Rangers. With several Tours of Duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. One night standing on a rooftop in Iraq, watching bombs drop on civilians, he is quoted as saying "This is one fucking illegal war". Shortly after that, in 2004, he was killed by "Friendly Fire" in Afghanistan. A cover-up ensued including the destruction of evidence, until four weeks after his memorial when the military had to admit the truth to his family and the country. Tillman’s mother blamed Donald Rumsfeld for the cover-up, Bush’s secretary of defense at the time. Tillman did not want a military funeral. He was cremated instead. At his memorial May 3, 2004 (maybe still available on YouTube?) following an official spouting propaganda about "Heaven" and "Service" His brother Richard got up to speak, saying - “Pat’s a fucking champion and always will be. Just make no mistake, he’d want me to say this: He’s not with God. He’s fucking dead. He’s not religious. So thanks for your thoughts, but he’s fucking dead.”
After President Trump bloviated about the NFL kneeling protest - Tillman's wife, and founder of the Tillman Foundation, Marie Tillman issued a statement about the president’s invocation of her late husband’s name. “Pat’s service, along with that of every man and woman’s service, should never be politicized in a way that divides us,” she wrote. “The very action of self-expression and the freedom to speak from one’s heart — no matter those views — is what Pat and so many other Americans have given their lives for. Even if they didn’t always agree with those views. It is my sincere hope that our leaders both understand and learn from the lessons of Pat’s life and death, and also those of so many other brave Americans.” There is an irony in suggesting Tillman’s legacy is somehow desecrated by protests that take place during the national anthem because those protests are said to insult the military, when it was that same military, the NFL’s longtime ally, that did so much actual damage to Tillman’s legacy after his death.
The War in Afghanistan is approaching 20 years - by far the longest war in US history... and it's still going on. Afghanistan was responsible for harboring the terrorist that attacked us.
The war in Iraq is much more confounding. It was in retaliation for being attacked by Saudi Arabians? while Saudi Arabia continues to be favored by every US President. Even as they go about committing war crimes (with our weapons) in Yemen, murdering American Reporters, Supporting Terrorism world-wide with their extreme view of Islam, known as Wahhabism, and more.
The Iraq War will rightfully go down in history as the single worst "Policy blunder" in U.S. History. Destabilizing the entire region, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians and creating more terrorism worldwide. - "This is one one fuckin' illegal war"
~ Just Say Know ~
~ Just Say Know ~
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