Posted on 01/17/2014 6:23:24 AM PST by Kaslin
A few years back, during the Media Research Center's annual gala, I was honored to pay tribute to the family of a real American hero, Michael Murphy, the Navy SEAL posthumously awarded the first Congressional Medal of Honor for service in Afghanistan, and the first since the Vietnam War. Few in the room knew the story because only Fox and a handful of other outlets told it.
When the medal was announced in 2007, William Kristol noted on "Fox News Sunday" that the news received a tiny fraction of the coverage given to the Nobel Peace Prize. The Nobel that year was awarded to Al Gore and the U.N. "climate change" alarmists. That award received endless accolades from the sycophantic press. Kristol joked about the fans oozing over "what sacrifices he made" to make a scary documentary (while making fortunes of money off the issue as well).
Murphy made the ultimate sacrifice -- his life -- and yet, as Kristol noted about the Long Island native, not even the "all the news that's fit to print" people covered the story. "Michael Murphy gets the Congressional Medal of Honor, and The New York Times, our leading newspaper and the local newspaper in this case, can't notice it. There's something sick about our culture when we don't acknowledge genuine heroes."
The Times quietly addressed this offense with a single story -- on page B-1, the front page of the Metro section -- eight days later, on the morning the Murphy family went to the White House to accept the honor from President George W. Bush. What had Murphy done? In a fierce firefight with the Taliban, vastly outnumbered, Murphy stood up in the line of fire to make a satellite call for help to save his men, knowing he would surely be killed by exposing himself this way. His mother said, "It didn't shock me what he did, it was just Mike. That was pure Mike."
Now -- finally! -- this story has been taken into theaters, with the movie "Lone Survivor," based on the memoir by Marcus Luttrell, the only SEAL to survive that day. The result: it "red-white-and-blew away the box office," reported TheWrap.com, scoring one of the biggest opening weekends ever in January, with $37.8 million, second only to a 2008 monster movie called "Cloverfield." It received a rare "A+ rating" from audiences surveyed by CinemaScore, meaning the word of mouth will push it to greater success, with an expected box office gross larger than $100 million.
TheWrap.com quoted Afghanistan veteran Chris Marvin: "If civilians don't accept their civic obligation to know some history from our nation's longest conflict, then why did we send our young men and women into harm's way in the first place?"
Actor Mark Wahlberg, who plays Luttrell in the film, told CNN that people need to see this film: "They need to know about it, and it's my job to get as many people into the theaters to see it as possible. I've never felt more strongly about something that I've been a part of. I've never been more proud to be a part of a project like this."
CNN anchor Jake Tapper -- himself the author of a book on American valor in Afghanistan -- walked into a rhetorical buzzsaw by telling Luttrell, "One of the emotions I felt while watching the film is, first of all, just the hopelessness of the situation," and "I don't want any more senseless American death, and at the same time, I know that there are dead people there, and good people who need help."
Luttrell responded abruptly, reflecting the courage that combat brings: "Well, I don't know what part of the film you were watching, but hopelessness really never came into it. Where did you see that? We never felt like we were hopelessly lost or anything like that. We never gave up. We never felt like we were losing unless we were actually dead. That never came across in the battle and while we were fighting on the mountain, and it was just us against them."
Soldiers accept dangerous missions without questioning the wisdom of their commanders. The public can question their commanders, but no one should question the resolve of these warrriors. That sacrifice they make for us -- especially the ultimate sacrifice -- deserves more national gratitude, and I'm sure that families like the Murphys are going to have their hearts warmed to see this story finally spread from sea to shining sea, embraced by a grateful nation.
The attacks on this great movie by the liberal, commie ‘RATS is disgraceful. Reading some of the audience reactions to this movie in the comments here is exactly what I experienced in the theater last Friday night. Nothing but respect for what they were watching on the screen. The libs call the movie “racist”? At least 25% of the people in that sold out theater were native Americans. Once again, the commie lib retards are clueless. I’ve got to go see it again this weekend. That audience restored a lot of my hope for the future of this country.
I am planning to see the movie either this morning at 11:00Am or at 2:00PM
Libs are very uncomfortable with virtue and valor. They Have no personal use for it.
I imagine when they see it, and the positive reaction, the inspiration it induces in audiences, they are baffled, jealous, and regretful
Don’t pay them no never mind.
Marky Mark once again picked a winner, and for the right reasons.
The libs have no power over this.
You cannot see this story and then pay any attention to detractors.
Forget it.
I went to see this movie at 5 pm, on Tuesday. It was shown in a BIG theater. I’d estimate there were 50 people attending. Not bad for a weekday.
There was NO clapping, or cheering. There were a few chuckles at appropriate times, early in the movie. But, from the time the shooting started? The theater was silent... except for an occasional sniffle.
As the final credits rolled, most people stood up... and, probably half were crying... but, no one left. We all stood there, and watched the faces of the REAL people who gave their lives for us. It was, extremely emotional to say the least.
I have to stand when the names are introduced at the end.
"Libs" identify with the likes of "Pajama Boy": Lazy, effeminate, aloof, effete, incompetent, pusillanimous, weak, ignorant and arrogant.
Well, it’s not so much a choice as much as what they’re accustomed to.
They are sheltered from reality by all that’s around them, academics, money and comfort and the media, including pop culture.
So when the gutsy Mark Wahlberg produces and presents this story with full input from the author, they’re finally confronted with what they’ve been sheltered from- reality and the truth- that virtue is about the most important thing in life; the kind of virtue that one has to work on, not just that with which they’ve been gifted. That it’s more important than running for safety and staying alive once the situation is met.
They realize it’s the truth, and the audiences know something more than they do, the truth about life, and in great crowds.
So, it’s gotta be painful.
I prefer not to gloat. Their criticisms will be shut out.
I just hope people will realize, and I mean conservatives, too, that the American people are in charge of congress, the congress is in charge of the military, and the military follows that order, and so the people need to direct governmental leaders to take care of the military, so the military can protect us from enemies.
But the military are actually the last in the chain of command to decide what conflict to engage in, and the military individual is the last in the chain.
But it still produces individuals of very high caliber - Matt Axelson being one great example.
We (conservatives) can take a great lesson from this story. These guys give their LIVES in the name of their country! We shouldn’t worry about getting called a few names or not getting invited to the right party.
More than anything, this story reiterates the lesson that freedom has a cost.
I went to see the movie on Tuesday afternoon. Theaters are not usually full on Tuesday afternoons but this one was. It was a very intense, somber movie after some initial camaraderie-related levity among the SEALs before their mission. Once the mission started, it was all business.
I’ve read some of the liberal critics of this fine movie. They call it racist and jingoistic. Coming from the lefties, these adjectives are badges of honor. They use the race card routinely now, like brushing your teeth. Jingoistic for extreme patriotism, which the anti-American lefties know nothing about. I doubt if they watched the movie. But if they did, I for the life of me, can’t figure where they came up with these terms to criticize the movie with other than to just dismiss it out of hand. I saw no racism or jingoism in the film. The critics must have bloody fingertips on their hands from scraping the very bottom of the barrel to come up with their hateful critiques. I saw brave men trying to carrying out their mission in the face of grave and deadly danger to themselves.
But at the end of the film, as a veteran, I had to stand up at attention as they scrolled through the pictures of the SEALs who have given their life for our country and to preserve our freedoms. I did so, like many other in the theater, with tears streaming down my face. Not a sound was heard except some sobbing. No one left the theater until the last face was shown. A very quiet exit from the theater. An excellent, anti-Hollywood movie to go see. Word of mouth will be what propels the box office ticket sales, not the Oscars, liberal awards, or leftie critics.
Yes, the military was the last in command, such as in Benghazi. The president, the sec of state, the military. I think. The military was ready to help, but someone told them to stand down. WHO!? We have a soldier whose been a POW since 2006(?) of the Taliban in Aphfaganistan. Has anyone tried to free him???? HMMM?
The movie “Lone Survivor” is an important movie to see if your are a US patriot. It shows the determination of our warriors who serve to duty, comrade ship, honor and surviving to complete their mission. The level of violence and depiction of what these heroes went through that terrible fight is uncomfortable to watch but necessary to show the reality of the combat & the inner spirit drove each soldier. I came out of the theater shaken but glad that our nation is defended by a military which contains such honorable fighters. I would not recommend it to kids under 16 unless they had a high level of maturity.
You can bet the motivation and push to take down this film is coming right from Obama’s mouth....filled with hatred for the American military. But....as bad as things look and are for the USA because of Obama and his Obamabot Democrats......America will not go down.....the Obama thugs will lose and be broomed back into the hate America cesspool from whence they came!!!
Bravo & Congrats to Peter Berg, Mark Wahlberg and the good folks that brought the American people this magnificent film that every single American should see!!! It is truly an epic, a film for all seasons and it will live on through eternity in the hearts of the American people and our magnifcent “citizen” soldiers and sailors.
And....what does POTUS Obama have to say....nary a word!!! Ya get the picture, Americans!!! When Mark Wahlberg received his award last night for best actor in an action film and gave a wonderfull acceptance speech, Ms. Oprah Winfrey, sat there stone faced full of hatred, while the rest of the audience applauded wildly. Result the hate birds of Obama/Winfrey go together!!! Wise up Americans!!!
Excellent enumeration of the liberal mindset. I'd add self-involved, narcissistic and gnostic (believing themselves possessed of a secret knowledge that no one else can possibly understand).
Going tonight with my boys. I’ve read the book twice. I know what to expect. We’ll be standing and saluting at the end.
Not entirely true.
Sergeant First Class Randy Shugart and Master Sergeant Gary Gordon were both posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions in the Battle of Mogadishu.
It could be that the writer meant first SEAL since Vietnam, Shugart and Gordon were Delta. However, given what passes for good research and writing these days, you may be right.
Supporting your point, here is a fragment of a hate-wing comment in DU (no link, you moonbats can go out and buy one), by DU'er Red Hat, citing-and-quoting a hyperbolically loathing-filled review at rawstory.com (no link):
It’s extremely important to note, going forward, that her delightful pan of the movie in no way actually attacks any of the people involved in the actual incident [But you will, won't you, you POS. -- LG] portrayed in the movie or in the book, which was ghost-written by a novelist paid for by the U.S. Navy and not actually by Marcus Luttrell, the main character, who was too busy serving to write books at the time. That Luttrell didn’t write the book is a fact, not an opinion. This is also very important to remember.
Glen Beck did not like this young woman who writes for a living pissing all over his propaganda by describing it as propaganda. Propaganda works best if everyone pretends that it’s not propaganda, you see, and telling the emperor he has no clothes is, in Beck’s eyes, are particularly egregious error if one happens to be young and female. He dared Nicholson to read the review to Luttrell’s face (it seems unlikely he asked Luttrell before bothering to offer him up for this confrontation) and he got all gross and weird about her gender while doing so ....
Note that the Prog reviewer in no way shape or form managed actually impugn the factuality of the account or to recast the obviously insane valor and fighting spirit of the SEALs who lived and died as the book and film describe. Rather, he belittles their opponents as "goat herders" as a way of trying to stain both their valor and their sacrifice, and sneers at the retelling as "propaganda". Then he offers to dissect ant shit with us over what is and is not propaganda, and who is qualified to define, describe, weigh, and finally judge it.
Obviously not us. We're just "right wing swarms" </title of piece>, entomological entities incapable of higher cortical functions.
And notice also that this commenter gigs Marcus Luttrell (who is the better man on the worst day of his life -- literally) for having help from a professional writer, something that this Prog duckspeaker and prolefeed-spewer will never object to when Obama or Hillary does the same.
And these hate-filled, deceit-mongering, agenda-driven people own 90% of media.
One would expect better from Bozell; he’s got either bad research or bad writing.
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