Article on Pat Tillman in UMass paper

[Fighting Sioux Fan]

How stupid! Just because you do not agree with what our goverment does and the US actions in Iraq and Afghanistion does not mean you should make fun of a man that died! Tillman did not sign up to kill arabs...

[U2Bad1]

Afghan resistance?? what a ****ing moron.

[Goon]

I found this article on Pat Tillman. I can't believe this person wrote this hateful piece on an American Hero. I can't believe that someone could write such a hateful piece on a truly selfless person that made the altimate sacrifice to defend freedom.

Pat Tillman is not a hero: He got what was coming to him

By Rene Gonzalez

April 28, 2004

When the death of Pat Tillman occurred, I turned to my friend who was watching the news with me and said, "How much you want to bet they start talking about him as a 'hero' in about two hours?" Of course, my friend did not want to make that bet. He'd lose. In this self-critical incapable nation, nothing but a knee-jerk "He's a hero" response is to be expected.

I've been mystified at the absolute nonsense of being in "awe" of Tillman's "sacrifice" that has been the American response. Mystified, but not surprised. True, it's not everyday that you forgo a $3.6 million contract for joining the military. And, not just the regular army, but the elite Army Rangers. You know he was a real Rambo, who wanted to be in the "real" thick of things. I could tell he was that type of macho guy, from his scowling, beefy face on the CNN pictures. Well, he got his wish. Even Rambo got shot in the third movie, but in real life, you die as a result of being shot. They should call Pat Tillman's army life "Rambo 4: Rambo Attempts to Strike Back at His Former Rambo 3 Taliban Friends, and Gets Killed."

But, does that make him a hero? I guess it's a matter of perspective. For people in the United States, who seem to be unable to admit the stupidity of both the Afghanistan and Iraqi wars, such a trade-off in life standards (if not expectancy) is nothing short of heroic. Obviously, the man must be made of "stronger stuff" to have had decided to "serve" his country rather than take from it. It's the old JFK exhortation to citizen service to the nation, and it seems to strike an emotional chord. So, it's understandable why Americans automatically knee-jerk into hero worship.

However, in my neighborhood in Puerto Rico, Tillman would have been called a "pendejo," an idiot. Tillman, in the absurd belief that he was defending or serving his all-powerful country from a seventh-rate, Third World nation devastated by the previous conflicts it had endured, decided to give up a comfortable life to place himself in a combat situation that cost him his life. This was not "Ramon or Tyrone," who joined the military out of financial necessity, or to have a chance at education. This was a "G.I. Joe" guy who got what was coming to him. That was not heroism, it was prophetic idiocy.

Tillman, probably acting out his nationalist-patriotic fantasies forged in years of exposure to Clint Eastwood and Rambo movies, decided to insert himself into a conflict he didn't need to insert himself into. It wasn't like he was defending the East coast from an invasion of a foreign power. THAT would have been heroic and laudable. What he did was make himself useful to a foreign invading army, and he paid for it. It's hard to say I have any sympathy for his death because I don't feel like his "service" was necessary. He wasn't defending me, nor was he defending the Afghani people. He was acting out his macho, patriotic crap and I guess someone with a bigger gun did him in.

Perhaps it's the old, dreamy American thought process that forces them to put sports greats and "larger than life" sacrificial lambs on the pedestal of heroism, no matter what they've done. After all, the American nation has no other role to play but to be the cheerleaders of the home team; a sad role to have to play during conflicts that suffer from severe legitimacy and credibility problems.

Matters are a little clearer for those living outside the American borders. Tillman got himself killed in a country other than his own without having been forced to go over to that country to kill its people. After all, whether we like them or not, the Taliban is more Afghani than we are. Their resistance is more legitimate than our invasion, regardless of the fact that our social values are probably more enlightened than theirs. For that, he shouldn't be hailed as a hero, he should be used as a poster boy for the dangerous consequences of too much "America is #1," frat boy, propaganda bull. It might just make a regular man irrationally drop $3.6 million to go fight in a conflict that was anything but "self-defense." The same could be said of the unusual belief of 50 percent of the American nation that thinks Saddam Hussein was behind Sept. 11. One must indeed stand in awe of the amazing success of the American propaganda machine. It works wonders.

Al-Qaeda won't be defeated in Afghanistan, even if we did kill all their operatives there. Only through careful and logical changing of the underlying conditions that allow for the ideology to foster will Al-Qaeda be defeated. Ask the Israelis if 50 years of blunt force have eradicated the Palestinian resistance. For that reason, Tillman's service, along with that of thousands of American soldiers, has been wrongly utilized. He did die in vain, because in the years to come, we will realize the irrationality of the War on Terror and the American reaction to Sept. 11. The sad part is that we won't realize it before we send more people like Pat Tillman over to their deaths.

Rene Gonzalez is a UMass graduate student

Here are the counterpoints to this article.

http://www.dailycollegian.com/vnews/displa...8/40900a3ea5eb4

[BigGame]

Here is a picture of that Rall Jackass, he says our military is over killing more civilians than terrorists. He is one civilian that I wouldn't mind finding out got caught in some Ranger crossfire.

[Goon]

She is actually a he. See the USCHO discussion - pages 4-6 USCHO for a picture, as well as his email addresses, phone number and home address.

This idiot appears to be getting a lot of attention, I have yet to hear anything sympathetic towards him. Sadly he will probably get on the national news in the next few days, hopefully just to get roasted. Likely he'll end up getting a job at a newspaper in DC or NYC, even the star trib would be glad to take him.

Who cares if this friggen morron is a guy or gir. They point blank are an F'N moron that wrote a hateful dispictable article that was intelluctially inept. Its not hard to see this person agenda (no matter how wrong) this all done under the guise that America is evil and in stead of figthing terrorist (rightfully so) we should be cowering in fear and also we should be appeasing dictators in the middle east. I also feel this person is also a member of the liberal blame America first crowd.

I would put this moron in the same crowd as Al Frankin and Michael Moore.

[jloos]

I would put this moron in the same crowd as Al Frankin and Michael Moore.

Since its a dude I won't feel so bad if someone kicks his ass, I guess I live by the motto never hit a girl.

I sometimes ponder who is the bigger jerkoff Frankin or Moore? I usually determine it is a tie, so as a tie breaker I go for who is uglier. Again a tie, they have to be the two ugliest human beings. Which explains a lot, they were probably picked on as kids and have not gotten over it. As a result they blame anyone they see as part of the "cool" crowd for all of societies problems.

[Goon]

Since its a dude I won't feel so bad if someone kicks his ass, I guess I live by the motto never hit a girl.

I sometimes ponder who is the bigger jerkoff Frankin or Moore? I usually determine it is a tie, so as a tie breaker I go for who is uglier. Again a tie, they have to be the two ugliest human beings. Which explains a lot, they were probably picked on as kids and have not gotten over it. As a result they blame anyone they see as part of the "cool" crowd for all of societies problems.

Your right those two morons are really evil. However, these two clowns Franken and Moore do have a few people that enjoy what they clowns spew...