goldenears

I clearly remember the sportscaster guys in May 2002 all talking about this rising star Athlete Pat Tillman, a guy who would ride his bike to practise whilst all his teammates would drive their fancy SUVS. They mentioned that he was a true American hero for walking away from a $3.5 million dollar contract with the Arizona Cardinals to join the Army and to do his patriotic duty and fight terrorists in Afghanistan.
The year before... he turned down a $ 9 million dollar offer to join the defending Super bowl champions so he could stay close to home, marry his sweetheart and remain close to his family.

This morning the Army announced that he was killed in Afghanistan at age 27. Looks like we lost one heck of a nice guy.

Snug

I agree 100%. It's nice to see there are some real heros out there. God bless him and his family, and all our troops.

Doug

WHIFF

Not all our troops gave that up to defend our nation. But several gave their lives. they're all heroes. Anyone who says differently has no spine.
Take that to the bank.

goldenears

Your absolutley right whiff..... not just Pat tillman.....ALL of them!

PistolWhipt

It took some big ones and a whole lot of intestinal fortitute (GUTS for the layman) for him to give his life for his country. For that, I am eternally grateful.

What irritates me is the fact that they only choose the high-profile people to be shown as heroes to the American public. What about the 19 year old kid, fresh off the farm who steps off the bus in Iraq and catches a bullet. He isn't a big topic on the 6 o'clock news ... just another number. I don't know ... I guess I just don't get it. GOD BLESS THEM ALL !!!!

PISTOL

jthorpe

I agree that all of them are honorable, and you're right to a certain extent. However, how many guys would give up millions of dollars along with a glamorous career for an 18k per year Army career? NOT MANY! That is what to me, makes him a hero.

Shovelhead

All gave some,...........

jaconst

shovelhead,
AMEN brother. god bless ALL of our troops and their families.

RATTLINRAM

My opinion is that the "HERO" part comes from the heart. Granted that the farm kid is not giving up 3.5 mil,,,,,,, but I would bet that his life previous to joining the service was almost as important to him.

There has got to be something inside the heart of a young person that is willing to give up the the simple joys of finally being old enough to pretty much live as you want within reason. I know that when I was 18, having a job, a car, living on my own and hanging out with my friends without having someone telling me when to get up, when to eat, when to go to bed was worth a million bucks at the time.

I know that all of these kids don't join the service for the same reasons, but I will guarantee that ALL of them have the word "HERO" branded into their soul,,,,,,,,,,,, even if they don't know it.

Being the son of a man who served in the Army for 22 years has often made me wonder how my life would have been different if I had joined the service at 18. ,,,,,, Instead, I chose not to sacrifice my million bucks worth of "18 year old freedom" to find out at the time.

In my eyes,,,,,,, everyone of the folks in uniform out there are Heros

GOD BLESS ALL OF OUR TROOPS

MikeyB

Pat is a special breed. Very few people would walk away from a multi million dollar job. But he did.
My hat's off to all the men and women serving in the military. And my prayers to those that gave it all.

MikeyB

PistolWhipt

Without a doubt ... I truly believe that Pat Tillman did something that very, very few men would do, and he did it for the RIGHT reason. I hope the publicity of his ultimate sacrifice will serve as a reminder to others that Freedom is a cause worth fighting for.

PISTOL

DZLPWR

I second all of the above!!

jthorpe

Exactly my thinking as well. I may not have worded it correctly, but you hit the nail on the head with that statement.

I'm not going claim to be a hero. I joined the Navy way back when because I wanted to be an Air Traffic Controller and the FAA wouldn't hire me then. I had no thought of serving my country at the time, only to serve my own desire to do something fun. Well, I got more than I bargained for when I went in. I thought it was hell at first. BUT, the lessons I learned while there were immeasurable. The military to me is like college, for real life. I'm not putting down those who go to college, but I've found that since I have a relatively high position in a company, those who work for me from the military have been generally more disciplined, pay more attention to detail, and take serious ownership of their tasks. The things you learn are truly amazing.


As my career went on, it helped me to understand that it was more then just me wanting to do something, it was something special. To have the honor of working to defend our country is a feeling like no other. I've never been in combat, and didn't want to be, but I would have done it without hesitation.

I remember meeting one of the POW's from the gulf war as about 90% of the pilots came from my base, Oceana VA. Various squadrons would come and go during that time, and when this guy finally came home, he looked tired and overwhelmed. When he came into base ops after getting off the plane, I went up to him and told him that we all prayed for them while they were captive. The only thing he could do was look at me briefly and say a quiet thanks. He was out of the Navy soon thereafter.

I know it'll affect him the rest of his life. Guys like THAT and those who volunteer to serve are honorable, and if you hear anyone tell you otherwise, give them a good smack on the face for me.


PS - after all that, I was offered a job with the FAA when I got out. I turned it down. I knew at that point being an FAA controller would have been nowhere near as fun as DOD or military. Much more exciting then talking to commercial airliners all day long.

For those of you who have the slight inclination to serve, I say do it. Whether it's the military, police officer, firefighter, teacher, volunteer (job goes here), DO IT. It'll be the most rewarding thing you do because you're then doing something for a cause greater then yourself.