‘American Sniper’ Complaints Grow in Hollywood: Should Clint Eastwood Be Celebrating a ‘Killer

a sniper is a long-range executioner. zero guts, no glory. the polar opposite of a 'hero'

originally posted by: neo96
a reply to: buster2010

Killed who ?

They were not all Iraqi.

warontherocks.com...

The RETURNof foreign fighters.

So what if they weren't Iraqi? Just because they didn't come from that nation it was alright for Kyle to kill them? What part of we invaded Iraq do you not understand.

a reply to: buster2010

Is there a point there?

Ever bother reading the GD Iraq war resolution?

The resolution cited many factors as justifying the use of military force against Iraq:[2][3] Iraq's noncompliance with the conditions of the 1991 ceasefire agreement, including interference with U.N. weapons inspectors. Iraq "continuing to possess and develop a significant chemical and biological weapons capability" and "actively seeking a nuclear weapons capability" posed a "threat to the national security of the United States and international peace and security in the Persian Gulf region." Iraq's "brutal repression of its civilian population." Iraq's "capability and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction against other nations and its own people". Iraq's hostility towards the United States as demonstrated by the 1993 assassination attempt on former President George H. W. Bush and firing on coalition aircraft enforcing the no-fly zones following the 1991 Gulf War. Members of al-Qaeda, an organization bearing responsibility for attacks on the United States, its citizens, and interests, including the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, are known to be in Iraq. Iraq's "continu[ing] to aid and harbor other international terrorist organizations," including anti-United States terrorist organizations. Iraq paid bounty to families of suicide bombers. The efforts by the Congress and the President to fight terrorists, and those who aided or harbored them. The authorization by the Constitution and the Congress for the President to fight anti-United States terrorism. The governments in Turkey, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia feared Saddam and wanted him removed from power. Citing the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998, the resolution reiterated that it should be the policy of the United States to remove the Saddam Hussein regime and promote a democratic replacement.

en.wikipedia.org...

Ya know that thing the current VP, and both Sec States voted YEAH on ?

Biden,Clinton and Kerry.

The only reason we went there is so that corporations and companies like blackwater and Haliburton could make billions.

You guys do realize that Haliburton made close to $50 billion off the Iraqi war alone...and hey guess who's a part of Haliburton....Dick Cheney.

Unpopular opinion...

I tend to agree that Chris Kyle was not much more that a cold-blooded killer; and he certainly should not be celebrated.

It is one thing to come face to face with your known enemy in the heat of battle and make a life or death decision that requires you to kill the other person or be killed yourself. It is something entirely different when you are given a name/face to kill and then you indiscriminately go out and end that person's life.

To whom was the "sniper" serving? The interests of the average American citizen? Corporate interests? Political vendetta? etc...

Kyle is no hero in my book....then again, I hold no respect for anyone who has fought in an illegal war under the disguise of "keeping America safe". I call BS on the whole lot of them. I get it; you were given an order....but did you ever stop to think about the who, what and why of that order? Do you seriously feel like you saved the "American Way"? Get lost; you are not as important as you have been brainwashed to believe. Chris Kyle is exactly where he belongs...and the irony of it all is that an AMERICAN put him there.

a reply to: neo96


Yes they voted on a resolution after they like the American public was fed a bunch of lies. Now I ask you again what part of we invaded Iraq do you not understand?

originally posted by: RoScoLaz4
a sniper is a long-range executioner. zero guts, no glory. the polar opposite of a 'hero'

This is one of the stupidest posts I've ever seen on ATS. Holy hell you are clueless.

It certainly takes zero guts to go into enemy territory and hunt the bad guys with nothing but your wits, MAYBE a spotter, and good camouflage to cover your ass.

So in your opinion, who does have guts? The member of a fire team who has a bunch of other troops, tanks, and air support backing him up? You should stick to playing Call of Duty and keep your trap shut about real warriors.

a reply to: LeatherNLace

Completely ignorant post.

Kyle was in a support role taking out enemy combatants who were trying to kill Americans. It's that simple.

Do you think the regular troop on the ground had any idea about the politics of the war? They're just trying to follow orders and get out alive.

If you honestly refuse to respect a military member who has no control over where/when they fight just because you disagree with the politics of the conflict, you should reevaluate your opinions.

Hollywood is filled with a bunch of hypocrites that think their opinions matter. They have glorified killing for decades and only have a problem with it when it runs against their politics.

originally posted by: buster2010
a reply to: neo96


Yes they voted on a resolution after they like the American public was fed a bunch of lies. Now I ask you again what part of we invaded Iraq do you not understand?

Still didn't bother reading the Iraq War Resolution.

Guess this was lies too:

a reply to: onequestion I think it is implied that Obama is a hero. However I do agree that Hollywood has a long history of war movies that have hero's. It has been a long standing tradition in Hollywood to have hero's. Usely hero's come about because of some conflict that happens. All the western's with John Wayne for a example, or Bruce Willis in all the Die Hard movies. They all have hero's. The Hollywood elite simply forget to make the connection most the time in what a true hero is, and what their version is.

a reply to: amazing

It's more complex than just he was bad or he was good. I don't particularly like the guy, a lot of the stuff he said and that fact that some of those people he killed were probably innocent civilians.

Actually he wasn't targeting civilians, unless they tried to do harm to the American soldiers he is there to protect.

As he would eventually describe in American Sniper, his first kill on the sniper rifle came in late March 2003, in Nasiriya, Iraq. It wasn’t long after the initial invasion, and his platoon—“Charlie” of SEAL Team 3—had taken a building earlier that day so they could provide overwatch for a unit of Marines thundering down the road. He was holding a bolt-action .300 Winchester Magnum that belonged to his platoon chief. He saw a woman about 50 yards away. As the Marines got closer, the woman pulled a grenade.

www.dmagazine.com...

And you can figure out how that ended for the lady.

a reply to: RoScoLaz4

a sniper is a long-range executioner. zero guts, no glory. the polar opposite of a 'hero'

Really?

In his four tours of duty in Iraq, Kyle earned two Silver Stars and five Bronze Stars with Valor. He survived six IED attacks, three gunshot wounds, two helicopter crashes,

www.dmagazine.com...

Looks as though he went through more than most did during his tours of duty.

Here's a HUGE aspect that people, including the negative critics, seem to miss about the movie and Chris Kyle:

You're seeing the war from Chris' point of view. He joined the Navy in 1999. After 9/11, the entire country was united in patriotic fervor and ready to go fight the terrorists. I was one of MANY people who joined the military because of 9/11.

Chris Kyle believed, like all military members at the time, that what they were doing was right and they were protecting the U.S. from terrorism. He had a job to do: kill anyone who was trying to kill his guys. He did that job no better or worse than anyone else but he happened to be in a lot of very hostile areas that were "target rich." Do we ever hear about a sniper who got 150 kills instead of Chris' 160? No, because there was quite a bit of legend built up around Chris that he had nothing to do with.

Chris is a modern-day version of Alvin York or Audie Murphy... through no fault of his own, he was turned into a symbol of morale for the troops and his legend grew out of control.

People now see that the war in Iraq was misguided and turned into a decade-long nightmare that still hasn't resolved itself. Many critics and ignoramuses in general are looking at Chris' service with the benefit of hindsight and judging his actions unfairly.

originally posted by: buster2010
a reply to: neo96

Seems to me that guy right there killed more people than Kyle, and he is heralded as a 'hero' of the Republic.

That's because the Germans was invading Russia. Kyle killed people in places that didn't invade America we were the invaders.

So it's the politics of it that make a sniper "good" or "evil?"

Sure the Nazis were invading Russia, but this was part of a war that the Soviets helped started with Molotov-Ribbontrop. They started a war with an invasion of the Baltics and Finlands where Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä was credited with almost 500 Soviet Soldiers killed. Was he a good guy or a bad guy?

Did Zaytsev go from good guy to bad guy when he was sniping Nazis in Germany at the end of the war since the role of "invadee" to "invader" changed?

originally posted by: Answer
a reply to: LeatherNLace

Do you think the regular troop on the ground had any idea about the politics of the war? They're just trying to follow orders and get out alive.

If you honestly refuse to respect a military member who has no control over where/when they fight just because you disagree with the politics of the conflict, you should reevaluate your opinions.

If you do not question (at least internally) your orders, then you are not defending America or the US Constitution. You are a blind fool sent on a mission to fight/capture/kill anyone you are told is the enemy. It lacks all critical thinking and makes you no better than a common murdering thug.

Completely ignorant post.

Completely ignorant reply.

Let me ask you this...how many of the people Kyle killed were on their way to the US to kill Americans? None you say? Then where was the threat? The way I see it, the US invaded a sovereign nation who DID NOT sanction any terroristic actions against the US...If the roles were reversed, just like the Afghans, I'd be defending my homeland too. Does that mean I am also deserving of a death at the hands of an occupying sniper.

originally posted by: neo96
a reply to: buster2010

Killed who ?

They were not all Iraqi.

warontherocks.com...

The RETURNof foreign fighters.

Yep. They took out a Chechen sniper who was trying to get me and the other guys and gals at the aid station. I might not be here now, if not.

originally posted by: LeatherNLace


Kyle is no hero in my book....then again, I hold no respect for anyone who has fought in an illegal war under the disguise of "keeping America safe". I call BS on the whole lot of them. I get it; you were given an order....but did you ever stop to think about the who, what and why of that order? Do you seriously feel like you saved the "American Way"? Get lost; you are not as important as you have been brainwashed to believe. Chris Kyle is exactly where he belongs...and the irony of it all is that an AMERICAN put him there.

With a paragraph like that, you're obviously not from DFW originally. Go ahead and state that idiotic opinion in Dallas and see how long it takes to get your teeth knocked down your throat.

originally posted by: LeatherNLace

originally posted by: Answer
a reply to: LeatherNLace

Do you think the regular troop on the ground had any idea about the politics of the war? They're just trying to follow orders and get out alive.

If you honestly refuse to respect a military member who has no control over where/when they fight just because you disagree with the politics of the conflict, you should reevaluate your opinions.

If you do not question (at least internally) your orders, then you are not defending America or the US Constitution. You are a blind fool sent on a mission to fight/capture/kill anyone you are told is the enemy. It lacks all critical thinking and makes you no better than a common murdering thug.

Completely ignorant post.

Completely ignorant reply.

Let me ask you this...how many of the people Kyle killed were on their way to the US to kill Americans? None you say? Then where was the threat? The way I see it, the US invaded a sovereign nation who DID NOT sanction any terroristic actions against the US...If the roles were reversed, just like the Afghans, I'd be defending my homeland too. Does that mean I am also deserving of a death at the hands of an occupying sniper.

Again, you're looking at the war with the benefit of hindsight. A benefit that none of the troops had at the time and they ALL assumed that their government wasn't lying to them.

I suggest that you rethink the point you're trying to make.

a reply to: LeatherNLace

Let me ask you this...how many of the people Kyle killed were on their way to the US to kill Americans?

They don't have to be on their way to America to kill Americans...And how many of those he killed were there to kill Americans?