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April 29, 2004
Idiot Watch
I guess it was only a matter of time when an idiot on America's anti-war Left wanted to speak his mind about former NFL player Pat Tillman and his death while in action in Afghanistan. I give you Rene Gonzalez, graduate student at the University of Massachusetts: 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. Just when you think it can't get worse, it does: 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. Last time I checked, both al Qaeda and the Taliban were still active in Afghanistan. Guess some folks don't read the papers. You can read an editorial from the paper's Editorial Board defending the decision to run the piece here. And as much as I might despise both Mr. Gonzalez and his arguments, I'm happy to support the paper's decision to run his editorial. What we have next is a test in a number of ways. Here's hoping the administration at the university protects the freedom of expression of Mr. Gonzalez, those who would criticize him, as well as the newspaper that ran the offending article. Fight free speech with more free speech -- no matter how stupid and heinous your opponent might be. Link via ESPN.com.
Eric
01:00 PM
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» INSULT TO PAT TILLMAN from The Galvin Opinion Tracked on April 30, 2004 12:20 AM |