American Sniper

[SoonerP226]

I guess I need to read the book again because I don't recall him claiming to have shot people from the super dome. Nor do I remember him claiming that he shot two carjackers at a gas station. I heard the story, but not from Kyle himself.

Was there ever an interview where he made these claims himself, or were these stories generated by others?

I don't recall those incidents from the book (American Sniper), either. I did find this via Google:

According to several reports published after his death, Kyle told a story about shooting two men who tried to carjack his truck not long after he left military service. As the story goes, police investigating the incident were directed to a phone number at the Department of Defense, where they were apparently told of Kyle’s military background and accomplishments as a sniper.

But the carjacking story could not be independently confirmed by various publications, including The New Yorker in its latest issue. Asked about the carjacking story, Taya said, “All I can say in response to that is that people enjoy taking rumors and try to paint a picture of what they want it to be.”

Taya said she couldn’t recall ever hearing Chris tell the carjacking story publicly. Asked if he had ever told her the story, she said, “I’ve been sticking to what he decided to share publicly and only share those things.”

She added: “I can tell you Chris was as honest as the day is long.”
-- http://www.dallasnews.com/news/metr...l-sniper-chris-kyle-carries-on-his-legacy.ece

ETA: Also found this: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/06/03/in-the-crosshairs

Plenty of reports of people being told this story by friends and acquaintances of Kyle, but nothing to confirm that Kyle himself ever told it the way it was reported.

 

[tim003]

Mr Kyle is a legend, so we are going hear a lot of stories about him in the next 20 years, some might be true with a little exaggeration and some it just totally BS. In the movie, the word "legend" has been used quite often to descibe Mr Kyle.

I think it takes a different kind of breed to do the things that Mr Kyle did while he is in the service and I respected that. For more than 10 years I could not find any justification that why we invaded Iraq, the war in Iraq just created the legend like Mr Kyle and more than 3,000 dead soldiers and a lot of soldiers coming home with missing some limbs and etc...
[Broken External Image]
http://www.nocaptionneeded.com/category/boots-and-hands/

"The prosthetic leg belongs to Army 1st Lt. Melissa Stockwell (Ret.), the first female American soldier to lose a limb during the war in Iraq. She is reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with the Bush family standing in the background. Interestingly enough, neither of the former first ladies is looking directly at Lt. Stockwell, each carefully averting their eyes, while former President George W. Bush appears to be staring at her with a befuddled and confused look on his face. We can only imagine what he might actually be thinking, but his gaze clearly directs our attention to her star spangled, red, white and blue prosthesis, an ersatz symbol of the personal and private cost of the war in Iraq that contrasts with the shape and contour of her remaining, normal leg. "

 

[FamousAJ]

great piece from Rolling Stone Magazine.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/american-sniper-is-almost-too-dumb-to-criticize-20150121

 

[SoonerP226]

great piece from Rolling Stone Magazine.

You left out "of crap."

I'll put up with a lot of junk in what I'm reading, but I only made it about half-way through that diatribe before I gave up.

 

[aviator41]

Here's a person that had flaws. A sniper that had 257 kills against his enemy.He was awarded one of his nation's highest awards and served valiantly on one of the most vicious fronts in history. Dude was a badass, and a hero to his people.

Problem is he was German and his targets were Red Army soldiers. He was Wehrmacht, not SS, too.

Your definition of a hero applies to this man too. Don't let the fact he fought for the Germans in WW2 taint your opinion.

I agree. he is a hero, a veteran of a war and deserves his countries respect. Just because he's not MY hero doesn't make him not a hero. he was a hero to the Germans.s

 

[dennishoddy]

great piece from Rolling Stone Magazine.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/american-sniper-is-almost-too-dumb-to-criticize-20150121

About what I'd expect from a liberal rag that puts out false stories about rape on college campuses that turned out to be false.

I loved this quote though.

"even the audiences in the liberal-ass Jersey City theater where I watched the movie stood up and cheered. I can only imagine the response this scene scored in Soldier of Fortune country."

I'm assuming Soldier of Fortune country would be the Midwest? LOL...

 

[FamousAJ]

great piece from Rolling Stone Magazine.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/american-sniper-is-almost-too-dumb-to-criticize-20150121

I said it was great piece....and I left it at that to see what responses I would get.

You all didn't fail me.

 

[druryj]

The problem with the Chris Kyle story is it's hard to know how much of it is true. He told so many lies, and not just "you look good in that dress" kind of lies, the "I shot and killed two carjackers" when it never happened kind of lies. And when a man will tell a lie like that, it very much calls into question his claim of the number of kills he had. And the people he killed.

WOW. What a crappy thing to say about the man. Way to show your ass, Ace, way to go. You managed to twist this thread all to hell and piss peope off calling a man like that a liar.

 

[CHenry]

WOW. What a crappy thing to say about the man. Way to show your ass, Ace, way to go. You managed to twist this thread all to hell and piss peope off calling a man like that a liar.

ef him...

 

[cjjtulsa]

The fact that he was shooting commies on his own continent shouldn't be discounted, either. Too little, too late.
I'm thinking that the atrocoties committed against soldiers and civilians alike by the advancing Red Army must've been a great motivator. Knowing that the Reds would rape and kill your wife/sister/children upon conquering a German town must've weighed heavy on the guys defending that front. Something Americans haven't experienced since 1865.

Absolutely. Heroism isn't relegated to the winners, or dependent on which side one feels was in the right or wrong.