American Sacrifice

American Wife: A Memoir of Love, War, Faith and Sacrifice – Taya Kyle (William Morrow)

I have never been a fan of those pundits, commentators and journalist who use the phrase “ultimate sacrifice” to describe those warriors who lost their lives in battle or on behalf of our country. The folks at Merriam Webster define the word Sacrifice as- “the act of giving up something that you want to keep especially in order to get or do something else or to help someone.” Most if not all of the members of the military that I have had the pleasure to have met, know or call friend would never willingly “give up” their lives; they would fight tooth and nail to return home to their family and if they died in battle they would do it with honor.

With her book American Wife: A Memoir of Love, War, Faith and Sacrifice, Taya Kyle, the wife of Chris Kyle, the man dubbed the American Sniper has released a story that is part loving tribute to the legendary warrior and a poignant reminder of the difficult sacrifice that the families of our all-volunteer fighting force make when they allow those men and women to go off to far flung places to fight for the freedoms we all in enjoy. It is a story that has never been given enough play and one that we all need to be reminded up more often.

While those family members are not subject to the level of danger that the warriors face a solid case could be made that many of those family members and survivors need to be given the support to deal with the stresses and strains involved with loved ones subjected to battle in far flung places for extended periods. Mrs. Kyle details the efforts to impact the lives of not only warriors, but also their families through work started by Chris before his devastating murder and continued by her with untold strength and grace.

She provides insight into not only the difficulties of separation, the uncertainty spawned by the dangerous career choice of sniper, but also the rollercoaster ride that she and her children have been on since her husband’s murder. Throughout she maintains a level of, at least by outward appearances, even tempered candidness, that I personally can’t muster when it comes to things like the legal case brought by the dirt bag former Governor of Minnesota, turned conspiracy theorist whack-a-mole, Jesse Ventura.

Number One With a Bullet

Modern American Snipers – From the Legend to the Reaper – On the Battlefield with Special Operations Snipers – Chris Martin – (St. Martin’s Press)

For whatever reason, there is a fascination on the part of the general public about snipers. I am not sure if it is the deadly skill set that they bring to bear or the loner quality that is often part and parcel of how snipers are portrayed in countless books; both fact and fictional accounts and the multitude of onscreen portrayals of these often larger than life characters.

From Chris Kyle’s American Sniper to Carlos Hathcock in Marine Sniper and even Stephen Hunter’s fictional sniper Bob Lee Swagger, there is something that inherently draws us to these men. The patience, the skill, puffed up swagger that is part of these guys character, that lead to amazing stories.

In Modern American Snipers – From the Legend to the Reaper – On the Battlefield with Special Operations Snipers, author Chris Martin explores not only the men, but also the evolving role of the modern, American, special forces snipers. The sniper’s job description has changed almost has dramatically as the tools that they use to complete their assignments.

Martin draws a clear picture of not only how the role of the sniper as changed, but also the in the field situations that are at the root that evolution. It is a core standard for snipers to always seek the higher ground and the upper hand on the battlefield and the training and tactics that snipers use in the ongoing war of terror has allowed them to have a major impact on not only changing the elements of battle but of the situational priorities that lead to lives saved.

A master sniper is worth his weight in gold not only for the fear they can strike in the hearts of their enemies, but also the confidence they engender in their team when they provide overwatch and draw down on the bad guys. While Martin captures the colorful characters that populate the special forces sniper community he also details the in the moment tactics that these guys bring to the fight.   

The History of America: A True Story of Guns

American Gun: A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms – Chris Kyle (William Morrow)

Chris Kyle was the top sniper in U.S. Military history, having served for combat tours in Iraq, earning a chest full of military hours for his bravery in battle. His sacrifice and dedication to the United States of America is unmatched by anything with the exception of his love for family. Running a close second would be his knowledge of the tools he used to ply his trade;  it is with that background combined with his desire to tell the true story of the impact of firearms on our nation’s history, that he set out to tell the story of American Gun: A History of the U.S. in Ten Firearms.

 

With the same pride that he brought to his craft as a sniper, Kyle paints a in depth portrait detailing not only the history of the ten weapons and their development, evolution and implementation, but the impact that they had on this nations in varying points in our history and in many cases are still having to this day.

 I hesitate to say that Kyle has a love of guns, because knucklehead gun controller types will try to portray him as some sort of gun-loving nutcase, but the truth is Kyle brought a healthy respect for and an incredible knowledge of these weapons combined with a desire to teach others about the safe use of them. He doesn’t glorify weapons, merely places them in their proper and impactful place in our history. The information he imparts will make any who try to ignore or warp the impact of firearms on history come off as laughable at best.

There is a “been there, fired that” quality to many of the ten varying firearms detailed in the book. That experience brings a level of trust to the statements Kyle makes about each of these weapons. He doesn’t attempt to paint a glorified picture of each weapon, noting the negatives of the weapons where appropriate as they went through the various stages of design and development.

While guns certainly are the focal point and the perspective from which this book is directed, it is much more than simply another book about guns; it is as much a book for history buffs, placing each of the weapons in their rightful place in our history.