The New York Times wonders....
By jkelly
Irish Pennants
....where are the war heroes in the Iraq war? Damien Cave lists three -- Medal of Honor winner SFC Paul Smith; Sgt Leigh Ann Hester, and Sgt. Rafael Peralta -- in his article in the Times today.
Cave gives a number of reasons why there are so few publicly recognized heroes in the Iraq war:
Many in the military are disheartened by the absence of
an instantly recognizable war hero today, a deficiency
with a complex cause: public opinion on the Iraq war is
split, and drawing attention to it risks fueling
opposition; the military is more reluctant than it was in
the last century to promote the individual over the
group; and the war itself is different, with fewer big
battles and more and messier engagements involving
smaller units of Americans. Then, too, there is a
celebrity culture that seems skewed more to the victim
than to the hero.
Cave omits the most important reason why Americans are unaware of the heroes serving in Iraq and Afghanistan: the news media don't report on them.
You can read about heroes virtually every day, but you have to do it on the web logs of Blackfive, Froggy Ruminations (Matt was thinking about giving up blogging,; send him some love) and Mudville Gazette, and in the dispatches from Mosul of freelance journalist (and former Green Beret) Michael Yon.
There are other Audie Murphy's out there, but you don't hear about them because the MSM and Hollywood don't want you to know about them.
Greyhawk's account of how the New York Times spun the story of SFC Smith is stomach turning.
mudvillegazette.com
Greyhawk also links to a column by David Gelertner, who nails the attitude:
Iraq war opponents and Bush-haters say they honor Smith's
courage. But their "honor" is mostly a sham. Unless you
understand what drives a man like Sgt. Smith to become a
soldier, the honor you do him is honor with a footnote
(he was a brave man, but obviously some kind of weirdo).
I think I understand what motivates many soldier-hating
boomers. They never served in the military, and soldiers
make them feel guilty. I never served either, and I have
felt that way myself. But fairness doesn't require that
you be defensive if you never wore your country's
uniform, only that you honor those who did. It's amazing
how spiritually cleansing a little gratitude can be. If
Democrats would only resume being Democrats, the nation
would rejoice: Can you imagine Woodrow Wilson, Franklin
Roosevelt, Harry Truman failing in gratitude to the
nation's soldiers? People where I live feel pity for Sgt.
Smith, but this man who lived a warrior and died a hero
deserves our comprehension, not our pity; and our
profoundest thanks.
http://www.irishpennants.com/archives/2005/08/the_new_york_ti.php
nytimes.com
jewishworldreview.com
