What makes someone a hero?
It seems like it's a simple question, but MSNBC host Chris Hayes caused a firestorm when he said on Memorial Day weekend that he was uncomfortable calling people heroes just because they served in the military.
"Why do I feel so uncomfortable about the word 'hero'? I feel uncomfortable about the word hero because it seems to me that it is so rhetorically proximate to justifications for more war," Hayes said Sunday on MSNBC. "I don’t want to obviously desecrate or disrespect the memory of anyone that’s fallen, and obviously there are individual circumstances in which there is genuine, tremendous heroism, you know, hail of gunfire, rescuing fellow soldiers and things like that. But it seems to me that we marshal this word in a way that is problematic. But maybe I’m wrong about that."
Hayes' remarks immediately sparked a backlash, with some saying it was inappropriate to say such things about those putting their lives on the line to fight for their country.
Hayes issued an apology Monday, saying he understood why people were angry that someone who had never served or dealt with the cost of wars would make such a statement. His apology reads:
"On Sunday, in discussing the uses of the word 'hero' to describe those members of the armed forces who have given their lives, I don't think I lived up to the standards of rigor, respect and empathy for those affected by the issues we discuss that I've set for myself. I am deeply sorry for that.
"As many have rightly pointed out, it's very easy for me, a TV host, to opine about the people who fight our wars, having never dodged a bullet or guarded a post or walked a mile in their boots. Of course, that is true of the overwhelming majority of our nation's citizens as a whole. One of the points made during Sunday's show was just how removed most Americans are from the wars we fight, how small a percentage of our population is asked to shoulder the entire burden and how easy it becomes to never read the names of those who are wounded and fight and die, to not ask questions about the direction of our strategy in Afghanistan, and to assuage our own collective guilt about this disconnect with a pro-forma ritual that we observe briefly before returning to our barbecues.
"But in seeking to discuss the civilian-military divide and the social distance between those who fight and those who don't, I ended up reinforcing it, conforming to a stereotype of a removed pundit whose views are not anchored in the very real and very wrenching experience of this long decade of war. And for that I am truly sorry."
Hayes' remarks beg the question: Who exactly is a hero? We'd like to hear from you. We'd like you to sound off in the comments below or hit the button below to send a video comment to iReport. Do you think Hayes was out of line in his comments? Do you understand what he was saying?
Must you have served in combat to be a hero? Does enlisting alone make you one? Should that word be reserved for the military? Or does it apply to people who put themselves above others?
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Hayes never served. Or if he did it was peeling potatoes in the mess hall back behind the lines stateside. But he does have the right to his own opinion.
'Or if he did it was peeling potatoes in the mess hall back behind the lines stateside"
to a lot of people condemning him this would still make him a hero apparently.
It's not the people armed forces who start the wars. They don't glorify warfare, either; they know it's horrible. They do what we can't or won't. They joined for myriad reasons, and they serve our country. Their service deserves our thanks, praise, and honor.
Now, the folks in charge who get us into these wars, they are the problem.
He's right. Most of our military men and women go to combat zones but never actually see combat. I have a friend who just finished serving in the Air Force and he never even touched a gun after basic training. What he did was important to the function of the military, but there's nothing heroic about IT work. Civilians could do it.
I also have a friend who did 3 tours, the first in a tank unit, the second and third as a cook. He has PTSD and I am very thankful for his service, but it's hard to consider him heroic when his job involved running over women and children; the enemy would force women and children into the streets and if the tanks stopped they would be ambushed, so orders were to never stop.
Frankly, I agree with the author, and i don't think he should have apologized. I served 21 years with the US Army, but I'm no hero and never did anything heroic, at least by the standards by which the Army measures heroism. The MEDIA and POLITICIANS are responsible for the over-use and abuse of the word. Just wearing the uniform isn't heroic. It shows patriotism and willingness to serve your country. But to be a hero, you have to do something heroic!
As a man that serviced in the US Army in late 60s, it is funny that the people that hate the army and think we should have one are all the cry babies of the world.
You want someone to fight your war, protect your ass, and then get upset if people in the military get paid for doing your work.
MSNBC host Chris Hayes looks like a person that would wet his paints if you asked him to go protect the country.
He said:I don't wnat to disrespect or desecrate ,if you don't want to do that why did you open your mouth?your small narrow mind the size of a pea say it all ! you should never ,ever get in the news and speak evil .....for sure you will not be not one's hero! to be a hero it needs to have guts and you for sure don't have!while many die for you safety to keep your sorry azz!#$% safe , you are here in front of the TV talking trash......I hope you ever get in the news ever !
You are wrong. To equate ALL military as freeloaders is ridiculous, they are just like the people where you work. Your hysterical blather does a disservice to those that work hard to control Pentagon spending.
Who are those that object to what Chris said? What have they done that is commendable?
You have the right to say what you just did but only because a number of military heroes died to maintain it for you.
It is the men and women who are willing to sacrifice their freedoms in order for you to spew your ingnorant blather. Go stand on a wall and protect our citizens before you judge our military.
As an USMC vet, i believe it is an overused word due to the regret over how the Vietnam vets were treated. Also makes folks who didn't (and never would) serve feel better because they 'support' the troops in order to get a feel good moment.
There are alot more important issues to debate, such as kim kardashian, American Idol, Whale Wars and the Ellen show.
speaking as a veteran of ten years, i don't feel like a hero and don't wish to be called one. I did my job. I was recruited just as many of you were for your job. No one made me join, I was paid the amount I agreed upon, I was given free training, My healthcare, housing, and basic subsistence was paid for. To all of those folks that opine that all service members are hereos, where the hell were you when I wasn't allowed off base in uniform because I'd get mugged or worse, where were you when I decided to join the civilian community and get a job but no one would accept my military training as "real", where were you when my child was referred to as "poor Navy white trash"?
A+++++
They were too busy turning down a vet for the job opening at their business. It went something like this: "So, I see you served in Iraq. Do you, uh.. have PTSD, or any problems like that? Mmmm... yes, well, thanks for your time. Don't call us, we'll call you." So much easier to feign outrage at an MSNBC commentator to check the "I Support The Troops" block for the year.
Don't know when you served but it definitley is not like that now
Is not a "hero" one who performs a heroic act? Saving a life would be one example.
Just cancelled my cable and now only get local stations. Will not miss scanning channels and pausing on this moron babblling 1000 words a minute.