Racism is what the cult surrounding Chris Kyle boils down to.

[redgreenandblue]

People who "applaud Chris Kyle for his service" instead of, correctly, applauding the Iraqis for defending their country are making a tribal-based choice, rather than a morality based choice, on which perspective of the conflict to identify with. They may not consciously consider themselves Arab-haters but, much like the Zimmerman jury, their choice reflects a bias in which groups of people are worth being considered "fully human" and which are not. The mechanisms are the same ones as those which enable structural oppression of African Americans within the United States.

[NightWatcher]

1. He's a white guy who got to indiscriminately shoot unnamed brown people without getting in trouble

Thus, he's a redneck's wet dream. This is where it all comes from.

Zimmerman, got to shoot a black kid. The cop in Ferguson, got to shoot a black guy....

People who are opposed to randomly shooting brown (or any) people are being labeled as "anti-soldier" or "anti-cop" wherever it applies because of it.

[BlueCaliDem]

5. + 1000 eom

[Wounded Bear]

2. Racism or jingoistic, hyperbolic faux patriotism...?

Po-tay-to, po-tah-to.

I haven't seen the flick. I'm not sure I want to. I've kind of had my fill of such 'art.'

[BlueCaliDem]

6. + 1000 eom

[lame54]

3. so if you like the movie you're a racist?

[Cal Carpenter]

7. LOL. I can't speak for the OP, but considering they don't even *mention* the movie

I don't think that's what they said at all.

But kudos for today's Putting-Words-In-Other-People's-Mouths award.

[lame54]

13. I think i'll wait for the OP'er to reply...

This post is clearly inspired from the hype the movie is causing

[sabrina 1]

12. What is there to like about a movie that doesn't tell the truth about the massive Crime

committed by a bunch of lying War Profiteers that got over one million Iraqis murdered in their own country which was never a threat to this country?

That instead glorifies a clearly disturbed individual who enjoyed killing Iraqis because he 'didn't care about them', they were LESS THAN HUMAN to him, 'SAVAGES'.

I guess that general we on the left were all so outraged over back when we had some morality, Gen Miller: Treat the Iraqis like DOGS' and 'We don't do body counts' of those 'savages', babies are such a threat to our National Security. But I guess Miller, the once despised sicko on forums like this, would be viewed as a hero today by some on DU.

Propaganda really does work. It is most disturbing to see how easy it is to propagandize a nation with bigotry and hatred and to excuse in any way, a crime that will go down in history as such.

[rhett o rick]

15. What? How do you draw that conclusion? nm

[lame54]

16. The only reason we are talking about this guy is because of the movie

[rhett o rick]

17. No one claimed those that liked the movie are racists as you insinuate.

"so if you like the movie you're a racist?" So what's your point?

[BlueCaliDem]

4. That's pretty much my take, too.

Just looking at the comments section of any site that posts about the movie, tells us all we need to know.

Also, Clint Eastwood should've made a movie showing that the Iraq war, much like ALL American wars, was about OIL and about stuffing the pockets of politicians and oil conglomerates. It was NEVER about spreading democracy around the world, since those who were enthusiastic cheerleaders for the war don't want democracy here.

So to paint Soldier Kyle as a hero is only showing how successfully and how easily the American people can be duped into believing that any war is about honor and respect and American integrity. I'm sorry, but NO American war was ever about those honorable reasons. It was, always has been, and always will be about the money and how much billionaires can siphon into their pockets, uncaring of the bloodshed and loss of life, liberty, and destroyed families they cause on all sides.

[KingCharlemagne]

9. Norman Mailer had an interesting take on the real 'why' behind our reasons for

invading and occupying Iraq. Acc. to Mailer, the U.S. did not need Iraqi oil per se, as most of our domestic supply comes from Mexico, Canada and South America. Instead, Mailer argued, we invaded Iraq so that we could control the spigot that the Chinese and Asia needed in the 21st century. Control of oil would mean we were able to exert influence upon those emerging economies and societies.

I don't know how one would prove or disprove Mailer's thesis but it makes as much sense to me as any I've seen or read.

I used to have it bookmarked but had to do a full re-install of Windows 7 and lost all my previous bookmarks, so can't tell you exactly where or when Mailer's idea appeared.

[BlueCaliDem]

14. "Those who control water and oil, control the world". The U.S. doesn't need more oil. True.

But the conscience-deprived elite is addicted to power and they hunger for absolute power.

It's true that the U.S. under Neocons never needed Iraqi oil, and it wasn't the need of it that had them push hard for the war that they'd use any and all excuses in order to get us there. It was their insatiable appetite for absolute power and total control of the world through any means necessary.

And here we thought the "I want to rule the world!" credo was just nonsensical rhetoric used tongue-in-cheek in movies and by pop icons. That isn't the case with the moneyed elite in the world. It's their life's motto and reason for being.

The American people, ALL people, need to understand this painful fact if we ever want to stop the U.S. from another unnecessary war that only the elites benefit from while the "unwashed masses" pay for it in blood, sweat, tears, and taxes.

[Hoyt]

8. Right wingers talk of Muslims chopping off heads. How about blowing em off?

Like our snipers, bombs, etc.

[Dreamer Tatum]

10. really need a Godwin's Law for racism. nt

[L0oniX]

11. Demonizing the supposed enemy is standard grunt psyche.