[quote]hockechamp14 wrote:
Don’t do it for Pat, do it because you want to. He wouldn’t want people following him blindly just because of who he is.[/quote]
Good point. I did have interest in the military before I’d ever heard of Tillman after September 11 though. He just kind of turned the spark I had into a bonfire.
I don’t want to turn this post/thread in to a political debate over the war. Nobody ever wins that arguement. But
I wasn’t ever really sure if the war in Iraq was necessary. What I was sure of is the fact that I was over here living the good life while 18 or 19 year old American kids were over there putting their lives on the line. Why was I any better? Why should they be the ones getting killed or maimed instead of me?
TC,
If you ever feel like changing the splash-plate pic, I think Tillman would be an appropriate representative. He had a decent amount of muscle, but if people knew what he embodied, they would know that’s what really made him a T-Man.
At the very least he would make a good Powerful Image every so often.
[quote]FCFighter wrote:
bigroman wrote:
Okay I dont realy know much about this guy but why’d they put him on the cover over like all the other soldiers that have died.
I’m going to try to restrain myself from getting in any sort of arguement in this thread. The only thing I’m going to reply is that it is the cover of a magazine about sports and Tillman played for the Arizona Cardinals.
For anybody else that wants to point out that he shouldn’t be put above all the other soldiers that died, he’d most certainly agree if he were here today.
My interest in Tillman is how he lived his WHOLE life, not just his military career. He lived it his way and not at the expense of others. I wish to someday have half his spirit, his courage, his ability to transcend barriers with someone that he has absolutely nothing in common with;his thirst for knowledge, his athleticism, his ability to totally disregard popular opinion and do what HE thought was right.
That’s my definition of a T-man.
[/quote]
Tillman is special because he gave up a HUGE salary to enlist in the Army for a fraction of his earning (I think he was an E-5, making about $20K). He left a glamorous, well paying job for the job of a grunt. He wasn’t a celebrity enlistee like Elvis was back in Korea. He joined Special Forces. He is the epitome of self sacrifice. All he wanted to do was serve his country. How many of you would do the same? His death is no more tradgic than any other, but his spirit of patriotism, sacrifice, and service is rare and commendable. He understood that FREEDOM IS NOT FREE.
In an age where childish pro athletes bicker over an additional $2 million on a $45M contract, he just went with what was in his heart and did what he thought was right.
I didn’t cry on 9/11/01, but I cried when I heard Tillman had been killed. All of the excuses I’ve made for not re-enlisting (having kids, putting my wife through school, being too old) were and are complete shit. I’m awed and humbled by his sacrifice.
So I saw the cover on the magazine rack at the grocery store today and picked up a copy to take a look at it. What an incredible tragedy to us all to lose a guy like that. He would have made a great leader in another decade or so, a senator maybe. I’ve been privileged to know a couple of guys who had some of his traits and they both died young too.
[quote]pushharder wrote:
Grimnuruk wrote:
So I saw the cover on the magazine rack at the grocery store today and picked up a copy to take a look at it. What an incredible tragedy to us all to lose a guy like that. He would have made a great leader in another decade or so, a senator maybe. I’ve been privileged to know a couple of guys who had some of his traits and they both died young too.
I don’t intend to sound cynical but being a senator in these days and times has nothing to do with being a great leader. I can’t think of a single current U.S. senator who is a great leader.
[/quote]
John McCain?
And agree with the posts here, great article by SI too, read it during ankle rehab, and have since been searching everywhere for a copy. Time for Ebay I guess.
[quote]bigroman wrote:
Okay I just want to clarify something,I had no clue who this guy whas and that he whas an athlete. And I wasnt trying to start a fight about putting him on it, I just didnt know that he whas an athlete so I whas wondering why they would just put 1 guy on it outta all the others that have died.[/quote]
There is a cool website called Google. Try it sometime.
Not to be a pussy, but his story makes me tear up every single time. That damned video memorial, the articles…I can barely make it thru any of them without being deeply saddened. In a day and age where heroes are invented and pushed on us, this guy stood up and became one without intending to.
[quote]slimjim wrote:
Not to be a pussy, but his story makes me tear up every single time. That damned video memorial, the articles…I can barely make it thru any of them without being deeply saddened. In a day and age where heroes are invented and pushed on us, this guy stood up and became one without intending to.[/quote]
If those get you choked up, check out this thread with the attached video. Were you speaking of it when you wrote “video memorial” or did you mean his funeral?