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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated
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From: LindyBill1/10/2010 8:52:33 PM
9 Recommendations  Read Replies (1) of 793966
 
Marine Official Slams 'Avatar': 'Disservice to our Corps'

By Big Hollywood on Mattis

Let this end the inane hair-splitting over how it's okay to smear the United States Marines by making them "former" Marines in the form of mercenaries.

The Marine Times:

Lost amid the staggering commercial success of "Avatar" and obscured by the punditry of the left and right as they debate James Cameron's social and historical commentary are the real warriors whose heroism, valor and selfless service has allowed the U.S. to leave a war in Iraq that many in 2006 thought was unwinnable and indeed salvage success from the jaws of calamity.

Avatar anti-American

"Avatar" takes sophomoric shots at our military culture and uses the lore of the Marine Corps and over-the-top stereotyping of Marine warriors to set the context for the screenplay. This does a disservice to our Corps of Marines and the publics' understanding of their Corps.

The Marine Corps embraces a warrior-scholar mentality and prides itself on understanding host country narratives and sensitivities in complex climes and places. Gen. James Mattis, whose catch-phrase is "no better friend, no worse enemy," better captures the essence of Marines who helped usher in the Sunni Awakening in Anbar province than the cinemagraphically convenient colonel-turned-mercenary antagonist in "Avatar."

Let's view "Avatar" for what it is, a leap in the wizardry of cinema, a digital fantasy and a vehicle for a film-maker to make a statement, but not emblematic of the Marines who honorably fight and fall to win our nation's real battles today.

Col. Bryan Salas director of public affairs

Headquarters Marine Corps
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