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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Ask Rush if our gay service people are heroes. And if so, why are they treated as 2nd class Americans.
Yeah, but... but... Leviticus, and stuff... (quickly changes subject to accusations of "socialism"...)
Rush is a washed up has been. The only people who listen to him are ones that will have to beg for transportation to the polls within a couple of election cycles. Chances are he will never call a gay person a hero no matter what.
Right on, Gary!! And I agree with Chris Hayes 100%. He is one of the few of really thoughtful and intelligent pundits in that overcrowded business of talking heads. Chris was absolutely correct in his assertions, as he is in most of his opinions. Good job Chris!! Keep going, do NOT apologize for anything you have said, since somebody with courage needs to say it. Not all heroes are on the battlefield and not all courageous actions occur solely in the heat of battle. Chris, you are my hero today!
I believe a hero is someone who puts their life in danger in an attempt to save another's. We are all potential heroes if the situation arises & we act heroically. Doctors, firefighters, nurses, police officers, soldiers, etc.., are all trained and put in a position to be heroic but are not heroes until they do something heroic. Keep the term pure by not overusing it. I think many misuse the term hero in an attempt to show respect, however well intentioned it cheapens the term.
Hero? And with Arms?
None of them are heroes.
You must capture the army without causing any harm to their bodies. You just need to extract their sould out using a Buddha palm. And then you become a true hero.
You did a typo:
sould = soul
I would actually agree with Chris Hayes. I do believe there are some flaws to his definition but there are people within the military that may never see a war, fight for there country, or go overseas and help those that are fighting. Those people shouldn't be put into a category with those that are fighting and doing such courageous things as to save wounded soldiers or deliver much needed equipment and food to those fighting.
Question; if a soldier leaves the military after years of non-combat desk service, and then becomes a pedophile abortion doctor, would the GOP still think he is a hero? Apparently many commenters here would.
I do agree with him. A here is NOT someone who simply does his/her job in the normal manner as their training provides.
I agree with Former Marine. I was in the Navy during the Vietnam debacle, but spent my four years behind a desk like thousands of others and never set foot in Vietnam. And while I did my very small part for the country I was not a hero. Heroes are, for the most part, combat types who risk or give up their lives for others. Most support personnel never have an opportunity to be a hero, so calling all personnel heroes does tend to demean the word. Having said that, however, I have great respect for all individuals who serve.
i served for 4 years. im no hero. The word "hero" is used today for propaganda to support a facist agenda. its that simple!!
Keep your eyes on the one who sings the loudest in the church choir.
Anyone who wants to know if ALL servicemen are heroes should google "Maywand District killings". You will find your answer there.
I think his comments were though provoking and his apology sincere. As a Vietnam vet sometimes I thought that calling all military personnel hero’s was society over compensating for the fact that we were considers "baby killers" and worse. I realized that that was too much of a self-centered opinion. I believe that anyone who willingly puts themselves at the disposal of their government, (spare me the political rhetoric here please.) who will put themselves in harm’s way, regardless of the job they do, should be considered a hero. I guess that certainly included firefighters and police but we are talking specifically military here. A Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airman etc. does not get to choose his battles, he or she goes where they are told and does the best job they can do and in doing so writes the proverbial “blank check” to the government and they people of the country payable for everything up to and including their lives. If you are a riflemen on the line or a REMF clerk, you all joined for the same reason, so I have no problem calling you hero. To address the other point about the that go above and beyond, that’s what they have Silver Stars, Navy Crosses and MOH’s for those are the “decorated hero’s” and there is a difference.
As a former soldier, who served in combat, I've ALWAYS had a problem applying hero to just anyone. An individual, regardless of his/her occupation can be a hero when they go beyond the normal expected tenets of their job/daily lives, and do something for the benefit of others while at serious risk to themselves. Simply doing your job, day in and day out, regardless of your job, dosen't make you a hero. Only when you risk your life for others should that term be used. this includes military personnel, firemen, law enforcement, etc. They ELECT to do a job and are paid. daily activity, even if it includes combat or fighting a fire, is part of their normal job. GO beyond the normal , then you are a hero.
Remember when the US Cavalry surrounded unarmed Indian woman, children, and old men at Wounded Knee and maasacred them with gattling guns? Man.... those guys were such heroes... You know, cuz they wore uniforms.
A lot of problems in life don't get solved because people don't want to hear the truth. In my opinion, broadly-applied labels rarely serve a useful function, since we know that each person is unique and you'll find dishonest and poorly-behaved people in any large group. So I personally prefer not to make a blanket statement that every person serving in the U.S. military is automatically a hero. I should add that I have never served in the U.S. military (several of my family members have), but believe that, in general and compared to other countries' militaries, the U.S. military holds itself to a higher standard. The people who built the values, beliefs, and morals upon which the U.S. military functions and those who uphold them on a daily basis are indeed heroes.
Chris Hayes is my hero
You don't have to storm a machine gun nest and rescue wounded soldiers to be a hero. Look at your average reservist who signs up for one weekend a month or two weeks a year and gets called up. He's been living with scissors at his neck the entire time knowing the call might come any day to pack up and head out for what s likely a lower paying stint overseas. He leaves his job, family, probably even his college plans behind to maybe do something as tedious as guarding a post, fixing tents, filling water containers or counting tent spikes for months in the desert. He comes home to find his job somehow got given away or reclassified so that his employer doesn't have to re-hire him.... He lost his financial aid in college because he had to leave before finals and has to repay his grants and loans AND go to college for at least one term to get back in good standing before he qualifies for financial aid again. Hopefully his pregnant wife hasn't gotten back in touch with her high school sweetheart in the meantime and emptied his bank accounts and dumped him 3 days before he gets home. These are what people risk when deciding to serve their country. People like this talking head make me sick. Grab a rifle and stand a post before you say anything about people that sacrifice for their country.
YIKE!
Lovely diatribe, nook, but in all your rambling, all you mention are the affects of his following orders. I have yet to see anywhere in your statement where you mention this person ( these people ) risking their lives, by conscious decision, in the heat of the moment, in order to save another who is in a position of imminent risk.
All I see is an example of a person doing exactly what they signed up to do. They, all of them, knew before they even signed the papers that they could be called away. That's not heroism.
Each of them knew they might lose their jobs, lose their families, lose their friends, their houses, etc. That's not heroism.
By your definition, murderers could be called heroes, because by the actions of their conscious decision(s), they risk going to prison for the rest of their lives; they risk their victim turning on them with fatal force, they risk being shot by a police officer or vigilante.
The difference it appears you are missing here, is that a hero risks life and limb in order to directly help another person.
You, sir or madam, need to pick up a dictionary and start learning the actual definitions to words rather than making up your own as you go.