Yeah, I know you do. It may be a different version for you, but here in the south, the saying is that they’re like assholes…everyone has one. Charming as that phrase is not, it’s nevertheless true both literally and metaphorically. We’ll circle back to that thought a little later…
Mr. EMT and I (our whole family, really) are avid readers. We enjoy a good story. Our tastes differ drastically, but we work it out. He has begged me to read some of his various favorites and I’ve never been able to do so before for fear of gut-wrenching pain searing me completely. Mr. EMT reads a lot of non-fiction war books. I did, however, succumb to one of his requests and read my first non-fiction war novel. I read American Sniper by Chris Kyle. Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock or living in North Korea, you’ve heard about it at least by way of the latest blockbuster hit if not the actual book.
The book was incredible, much better than I could have ever thought it would be. I’m always worried these books will leave a huge hole in my heart because of the death that comes with war. There were sad parts in this book, don’t misunderstand, but it was told so well and with such character that I fell in love with his words, his duty, his family, and fell more in love with our country. Yes, it really was that good. It gave someone like me who has never seen war or had to make these type of hard decisions an insight into what they do and what they go through. It gave me a real count of what the family they leave behind struggles with while they’re saving the country.
Fast forward to the blockbuster hit, and well I just had to see it, of course. It didn’t disappoint, at least not too badly. I’ve always been a book fan before a movie fan, though I understand the need to change things for the big screen. Going into this, I tried to keep that knowledge and understanding in the back of my mind. I tried to be open-minded about Hollywood telling the story that moved me. I read about how Chris Kyle wanted Clint Eastwood to direct, how he was already speaking with Bradley Cooper about his book becoming a movie before his death in 2013. After his life was taken his wife, Taya, stepped up and kept moving with the filming of the movie – making sure her husband’s story was told well enough to keep the pride flowing through his children.
Mr. EMT and I didn’t make it to the opening night of the movie and instead went four days later. This gave me ample time to Google reviews and read the outpouring support for this man’s legacy. It also gave me time to read the disgusting comments made by people who criticized his job, the work he did for his country.
This, my friends, is where I will circle back to that saying about opinions and include one that I’ve heard for as long as I can remember – empty vessels make the most noise. I have to admit that I was pretty well outraged at the comments I read by some of Hollywood’s elite and many, many other lesser-known empty vessels. My first reaction was, ‘How dare you’. How dare you try to defame the name of a man who fought four tours killing the people who plot to kill us every single day. How dare you try to take away the pride his family feels when they remember his sacrifice to this nation. The comments about how snipers are cowards were even more upsetting. These men and women train countless hours to be able to save us from our enemy’s wrath, the wrath that caused September 11, 2001.
After I calmed down a little (not too much, because I’m still violently disgusted in those who claim to be US supports/citizens who clearly are not) I realized that these empty vessels, these ignorant individuals obviously did not read his book, did not look further than the Hollywood movie, and therefore are fools with voices. If they had read his book they would have a much better understanding of how very difficult it was for Chris Kyle to do the job he did. He wasn’t a murderer, he was a protector and we are less safe without him in this world.
So, as the critics go on with their defamation of a hero and spew nonsense with their rights (freedom of speech, for example) that people like Chris Kyle fight to protect, I will know in my heart of hearts that these people are truly the ignorant, shameful, and absolutely are not Americans regardless of nationality.
In Somnis Veritas 