Those who have never served in the US military, especially adherents to the conservative ideology, tend to believe everything our military leaders say. They believe our military can do anything and it never lies. Those who have served, particularly during war-time, regardless of their political persuasion, tend to be leery of what our military can accomplish in foreign countries and know the military leadership lies.
The Pat Tillman Story, directed by Amir Bar-Lev, is a gripping account of a traumatized family that traveled from blind believers to realizing our military leadership lies.
Pat Tillman was a professional football player who turned checked in his mega-million NFL contract to enlist in the US Army and join the Special Operations Rangers. Deployed to Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, there was a fire fight and Tillman was killed. The US military leadership immediately called Tillman a hero and awarded him a Silver Star, the third highest medal for bravery.
But the story that Tillman died bravely fighting the Taliban was bogus. He was killed by soldiers in his platoon. It was an accident, an incident of so-called “friendly fire.” By the US military continued to say otherwise, continued to spin the story. It continue to lie and make the Army’s most famous soldier a recruitment poster for the Army.
In the Tillman family, it was most of all the mother who refused to believe the lies and who relentlessly dug for the facts. The real hero in The Tillman Story is Tillman’s mother.
When the truth was finally revealed, Pat had died not from the actions of the Taliban but from the confused actions of his fellow soldiers, the question became was it the “fog of war” or simply gross negligence. That is difficult to determine, but what the military leadership did, exploit Pat’s death through a pattern of lies, is clear.
This excellent, seamless documentary also looks into just how far up the chain of command this despicable behavior went. A three-star general was held responsible, but he appears to be the “fall guy,” since the film makes it clear that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld must have been involved in the cover-up, possible President Bush himself.
Truth was reveled in this case because the wronged dead soldier was not a typical soldier and he had a mother who tenaciously pursued the truth. The mainstream media did not play a major role in revealing the facts, being quick to accept the military’s spin, and excessively reluctant to challenge those who wrap themselves in the flag of patriotism and claim to have only the interests of our soldiers at heart. Baloney!
Recently, however, the media, or at least The New York Times, has shown backbone by exposing retired senior military officers, who draw over a hundred grand yearly in military pensions, working as military affairs consultants for large media corporations while simultaneously sitting on the boards of defense contracts – an obvious conflict of interest! While reporting on the war to the public, the generals drew huge salaries from the corporations making money off the war. Again, this cover-up was despicable.
In showing the pain of the family and in the immorality of our military leadership, The Pat Tillman Story is an ice pick that opens a Pandora Box of ugly self-interest and public duplicity. It is way past time for the public and the media to wake up, look through clear lenses, and demand an honorable leadership for our military personal. Amir Bar-Lev has done a great service to our country by showing us the horror when those in charge lie.
