The American Sniper Was No Hero

Reason Magazine ^ | January 29, 2015 | Sheldon Richman

[2ndDivisionVet]

Despite what some people think, hero is not a synonym for competent government-hired killer.

If Clint Eastwood's record-breaking movie, American Sniper, launches a frank public conversation about war and heroism, the great director will have performed a badly needed service for the country and the world.

This is neither a movie review nor a review of the late Chris Kyle's autobiographical book on which the movie is based. My interest is in the popular evaluation of Kyle, America's most prolific sniper, a title he earned through four tours in Iraq.

Let's recall some facts, which perhaps Eastwood thought were too obvious to need mention: Kyle was part of an invasion force: Americans went to Iraq. Iraq did not invade America or attack Americans. Dictator Saddam Hussein never even threatened to attack Americans. Contrary to what the George W. Bush administration suggested, Iraq had nothing to do with the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Before Americans invaded Iraq, al-Qaeda was not there. Nor was it in Syria, Yemen, and Libya.

The only reason Kyle went to Iraq was that Bush/Cheney & Co. launched a war of aggression against the Iraqi people. Wars of aggression, let's remember, are illegal under international law. Nazis were executed at Nuremberg for waging wars of aggression. With this perspective, we can ask if Kyle was a hero.

Defenders of Kyle and the Bush foreign policy will say, "Of course, he was a hero. He saved American lives."

What American lives? The lives of American military personnel who invaded other people's country, one that was no threat to them or their fellow Americans back home. If an invader kills someone who is trying to resist the invasion, that does not count as heroic self-defense. The invader is the aggressor. The "invadee" is the defender. If anyone's a hero, it's the latter.

In his book Kyle wrote he was fighting "savage, despicable evil" — and having "fun" doing it. Why did he think that about the Iraqis? Because Iraqi men — and women; his first kill was a woman — resisted the invasion and occupation he took part in.

That makes no sense. As I've established, resisting an invasion and occupation — yes, even when Arabs are resisting Americans — is simply not evil. If America had been invaded by Iraq (an Iraq with a powerful military, that is) would Iraqi snipers picking off American resisters be considered heroes by all those people who idolize Kyle? I don't think so, and I don't believe Americans would think so either. Rather, American resisters would be the heroes.

Eastwood's movie also features an Iraqi sniper. Why isn't he regarded as a hero for resisting an invasion of his homeland, like the Americans in my hypothetical example? (Eastwood should make a movie about the invasion from the Iraqis' point of view, just as he made a movie about Iwo Jima from the Japanese point of view to go with his earlier movie from the American side.)

No matter how often Kyle and his admirers referred to Iraqis as "the enemy," the basic facts did not change. They were "the enemy" — that is, they meant to do harm to Americans — only because American forces waged an unprovoked war against them. Kyle, like other Americans, never had to fear that an Iraqi sniper would kill him at home in the United States. He made the Iraqis his enemy by entering their country uninvited, armed with a sniper's rifle. No Iraqi asked to be killed by Kyle, but it sure looks as though Kyle was asking to be killed by an Iraqi. (Instead, another American vet did the job.)

Of course, Kyle's admirers would disagree with this analysis. Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News commentator, said, "Chris Kyle was clear as to who the enemy was. They were the ones his government sent him to kill."

Appalling! Kyle was a hero because he eagerly and expertly killed whomever the government told him to kill? Conservatives, supposed advocates of limited government, sure have an odd notion of heroism.

Excuse me, but I have trouble seeing an essential difference between what Kyle did in Iraq and what Adam Lanza did at Sandy Hook Elementary School. It certainly was not heroism.

[2ndDivisionVet]

I want to hear the libertarians here explain this.

[SZonian]

One was doing his duty/job, the other was psychotic killer...

It’s really quite that simple ahole...(not you 2nd DivVet)

[DemforBush]

“Excuse me, but I have trouble seeing an essential difference between what Kyle did in Iraq and what Adam Lanza did at Sandy Hook Elementary School.”

Excuse *me*, but you are a bleeping bleep-head who doesn’t have a bleeping clue about bleep in life.

[bray]

Typical America hating Marxist. How’s letting the Mooslimbs running wild working out for you buckwheat?

Pray America is waking

[centurion316]

Excuse me, but I have trouble seeing an essential difference between what Kyle did in Iraq and what Adam Lanza did at Sandy Hook Elementary School. It certainly was not heroism.

Sheldon's heroes:

The men who flew the jets into the World Trade Center

Michel Brown of Ferguson, MO

Mayor de Blasio

Rapper Suge Knight

Barack Obama

[bert]

and what’s more, Sheldon has shown us that he is in reality an American enemy. Such thoughts lead to our destruction

[Yo-Yo]

Contrary to what the George W. Bush administration suggested, Iraq had nothing to do with the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Can the author cite a quote from the Bush Administration that suggested Iraq did have something to do with the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001? I thought not.

The Bush administration was concerned that Iraq was not complying with UN weapons inspectors, and that Hussein would give WMDs to terrorists who would use them on the United States post-9/11.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"Eastwood's movie also features an Iraqi sniper. Why isn't he regarded as a hero for resisting an invasion of his homeland, like the Americans in my hypothetical example?"

Someone is free to correct me if I'm wrong, but as I recall, the sniper was Syrian. So using her example he was also a foreign invader...

[2ndDivisionVet]

But Iraq may have had something to do with Oklahoma City, some researchers say.

[2ndDivisionVet]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t we get United Nations authorization before we went into Iraq? Then how are we violating international law?

[bert]

first and foremost, our myopic press can’t see the reality. W’s invasion of Iraq was but a continuation of the war begun earlier when Saddam invaded Kuwait.

Once Saddam was gone, the tribal,civil war began. ISIL is the manifestation. Iraq is no more. Iraq has reverted to Ottoman division

America was continuously engaged in military flights over Iraq for the whole interim

To include extraneous matters now is revisionist

[wbarmy]

My co-workers had to watch me foaming at the mouth as I read this.

1. Saddam never threatened America or Americans? Shekdon, you ignorant.... Iraq was shooting SAMs at our planes in teh no fly zone. Saddam was constantly speechifying about getting nuclear weapons to destroy American power in the Middle East. There was even an Iraqi plot to Kill President Bush (G.W.H.). What an ignorant piece of trash.

2. Saddam used Salman Pak (google it) as a training ground for members of every single terrorist group on the face of the earth, Al Queda included. Old terrorists retired there, hunted terrorists fled there.

3. The Iraqis we had to deal with in Iraq (I was there 03-04) were terrorists. They used suicide bombers, kids, and women to attack Americans for sectarian and terror purposes. They killed each other on an epic scale. They were and are evil. And the writer should go talk to the Iraqi freedom fighters in ISIS and see how they treat him.

4. To equate Adam Lanza and Chris Kyle is beyond anything I can even imagine. What a vile disgusting piece of trash this scummy.....

[rfreedom4u]

Nazis were not executed for wars of aggression. They were executed for their crimes against humanity. You ever hear of the Holocaust?

[wbarmy]

I thought the writer was a female also until I reread it. I wonder if there is a psychological point there.

[HANG THE EXPENSE]

You’re right of course 2DV, these leftist will get theirs one day.

[agere_contra]

Did the kids at Sandy Hook have AK47’s and grenades?

[onedoug]

Soldiers, Marines, Sailors and Air Force personnel do what their told and go where they’re sent. And they should not be protected in that process?

This Sheldon Richman himself seems to me an islamist or islamist facilitator.

[TexasFreeper2009]

The liberals can keep repeating the lie about Iraq until the end of the world and it will still be a lie.

Iraq invaded its peaceful neighbor Kuwait.
(but wait! they say. That was the justified reason for the 1st gulf war!)

True.

And the agreement to end the first gulf war had conditions. Almost none of which Iraq kept. Then on top of that Iraq did the following things:

Iraq was a state sponsor of terror.
Iraq paid money to the families of suicide bombers.
Iraq started shooting at our planes patrolling the no fly zone

so! the libs say. They didn't attack us! (well accept for shooting at our planes)

To that I respond. The Germans didn't attack us at pearl harbor either! but when you are fighting a war against someone and another country chooses to take the side of your enemy then they have become your enemy also!

Iraq was a state sponsor of terrorism! (you know the same terrorists which ATTACKED US on 9-11)

Just as Germany was an ally of Japan, which ATTACK US at pearl harbor!

I know liberals have pee sized brains, but even they should be able to understand something that simple.

[Flick Lives]

I want to hear the libertarians here explain this.

Put a label on someone. Associate all "like minded" people with a given label. Make anyone in the group "guilty" of any crimes committed by the group.

That is the antithesis on individualism and libertarian thinking. The idea of "group guilt" is in fact marxist.

[Above My Pay Grade]

Sounds like Marxist rhetoric, but Reason is the leading LIBERTARIAN publication in America. While Libertarians get some things right (where they overlap with Conservatives) on other issues they are worse than Liberals.