It is commonly said in the Naval Spec War community that, “Those who kill for fun are sadistic. Those who kill for money are professionals. Those who kill for both fun and money are Navy SEALS.”
The reason Navy SEALS have traditionally been the “silent professionals” is because of the nature of their job. It’s not just the fact that most, if not all of the missions are top secret, it’s that what they do is rather horrific. Until SEALS started writing books and becoming celebrities, the government and Navy could control the message and image of them and due to the silence of team members, it left much to the imagination. But the fact of the matter is, SEALS are calculated and deadly sons of bitches and the government likes them that way. But that’s not how you sell them to a squeamish and sentimental public, the support of which the government needs to wage wars.
Men who become SEALS are not just physically strong, they have something internal that most people do not, which is what makes them so elite. If they make it through Basic Underwater Demolition School (BUDS), the government brings out and finely tunes that “special” internal ingredient to make them trained professionals. What makes them different is that they have the backbone to play a ruthless game that has virtually no rules. They are capable of things that most people are not. In other words, they have a unique make-up that is rare – much like a professional athlete. They are trained to kill, to survive, and to accomplish their mission at all costs. Period. They are not “nice guys,” as much as Hollywood or the government would like us to think so. And for the job they are trained to do, they can’t be.
A counter intelligence mantra commonly heard among the teams is, “Admit nothing, deny everything, and make counter accusations.” Does that sound like a nice guy to you? It kind of sounds like a tame version of Chris Kyle to me.
I first heard of Chris Kyle after he was killed. The whispers I heard (I say whispers because it was mostly headlines I saw) were largely negative. So I had a preconceived and negative perception of him. When “American Sniper” came out I read a movie review on it that intrigued me enough to see it. I like military movies and typically will see any that come out, but until I had read this review, I wasn’t planning on seeing “American Sniper.” After watching it, however, I walked away liking the guy – and who wouldn’t after watching that movie? It goes to show the power art has on shaping perceptions.
But then all the articles started pouring onto the internet like a dam had broken; it turns out the guy was a compulsive liar. From killing looters in New Orleans, to knocking out Jesse Ventura, Kyle told tall tales as big as Texas. Given the light shed on Kyle, it appears he is the exact opposite of a silent professional; he’s got a big mouth not just about his military service, but about fictional events as well. Why he chose to make up stories is really beside the point. He did.
So this begs the question, is he a hero?
I served in the Navy. There are jobs that are glamorous, like SEALs and fighter jocks, and there are jobs that are less than glamorous like mail clerks and dentists. My job was somewhat in the middle, I worked in intelligence. I served after 9/11. I was in the same Navy at the same time as Chris Kyle. We were both doing our jobs, albeit very different ones, and served as part of a team with a shared purpose and goal. When one enlists in the military, they do so voluntarily. Once enlisted they are obligated to do their job. If they do their job well, they have served honorably. That is called duty.
Chris Kyle, by all accounts, did his duty. He performed his job well; well enough that he may go down in history as the most formidable sniper in American History, at least if he didn’t lie about how many kills he had too. But does that make him a hero?
I’m not sure. He was trained to be a sniper in the Navy SEALS. While it may be an extraordinary job, it was a job none-the-less. From what I have read, he was a professional. Based on the little I know about shooting firearms (the only time I shot one in the Navy was during boot camp) and what I have read about Kyle, his skill level was exceptional. I think he served the military and his country in a manner consistent with expectations for the job he enlisted to do. I think he should be recognized for his service, because that’s what it was. Service.
But beyond that, I’m not sure what Chris Kyle did that propels him from a guy doing his duty into the hero category. I can’t help thinking that a hero is more than just a brave person, more than someone who does extraordinary things. I tend to think that a hero possesses character as well. Would a hero be a compulsive liar? Perhaps during war and to enemies we might accept it – but in civilian life about events that are not going to determine life or death, it’s questionable.
But maybe we are asking the wrong question. Maybe we shouldn’t be asking if Chris Kyle was a hero, but should ask instead what a hero is. Perhaps our definition of heroism is what’s questionable. That might in part be because the word hero has been watered down and used too loosely. Since 9/11 we often hear all military members referred to as “American heroes.” I disagree with that sentiment. I’m not a hero. The mere thought of being considered one makes me massively uncomfortable. And while I appreciate citizens for their gratitude, I’m a veteran and that’s all.
Perhaps the fault lies in trying to make heroes something they are not. Heroes are still human after all. Condemning a person for their faults is natural, but propping them up to be something other than human is wrong. While lying certainly tarnishes Kyle’s reputation and speaks to his character, perhaps portraying him as a narrow version of himself, or as a cleaned up version, or expecting that he shouldn’t have any faults is where the fault lies. I can understand why Kyle’s family would not want all of his faults portrayed on the big screen, and I can even understand why Clint Eastwood would want to portray him the way that he did, but perhaps that’s equally as bad as Chris Kyle’s lies. Perhaps we should be honest too and start to recognize that hero creation is naive and dangerous and we are not doing anyone any favors by indulging in it.
War is never black and white with good guys and bad guys. It’s an argument that has turned to violence. It’s destructive, painful, and ugly. Politics is often just as bad and is largely what gets us into war in the first place. People are both good and evil and the world is full of dangerous and scary ones prone and willing to fight. That is why we have a military; it exists to win those fights. It’s not pretty but glamorizing it isn’t either. Realism may not be as sexy as idealism, but at least it allows people to see clearly.
So is Chris Kyle a hero? I think that is largely a subjective question. To some he may be. To others he definitely is not. Do I think he is a hero? No. Do I think he is a scoundrel? Yes. But is that a bad thing? Not necessarily. History books are filled with men and women with questionable character who became legends. Legend I can buy. Kyle certainly fits the definition of a famous person who did something “exceptionally” well. And whether we like it or not, myths and legends reveal something about the identity, mores, and laws of a nation, our nation in this case.
In the end, we need people like Kyle because there are people like him in the world. Until such time as there are no more wars, men like Chris Kyle will not only be useful but valuable, and quite possibly because they have questionable character. It might not be how we want to look at it, but it’s an honest way.
Greta Hyland has a Masters degree in Environmental Policy & Management and has worked for the BLM and the NPS as well as for non-profit organizations. She is a regular contributor to the Utah Adventure Journal and is the Copy Editor at the Independent. She writes regularly on her blog about environmental policy issues affecting the southwest, as well as personal narratives about outdoor recreation and simple living. Her blog can be found at www.thesouthwestjournal.wordpress.com A Utah native, Greta is a consummate desert rat and loves exploring the southwest. She can be reached at [email protected]
