Thoughts on Pat Tillman

Actually, this is more about thoughts on Pat Tillman than about Tillman...

When news of his death were first reported, I struggled a bit with putting to words what my reaction was to the story. Clearly, Tillman acted on his patriotism and his sense of duty for a cause he believed noble and right.

The bent of the stories -- whether in print or broadcast -- focussed on the fact that he gave up his multi-million dollar career in pro football, that somehow he gave up more than others who felt as patriotic. The implication, of course, was that he was heroic by virtue of the fact that he gave up wealth and (to a lesser degree) fame.

Today, though, I came across an "Email to Deborah" Norville at the MSNBC website, which brought it a bit more together for me:

"I am sorry about the loss of Mr. Tillman... regardless of the walk of life of the soldiers, no death should be more publicized and more valued than others, because they all make great sacrifices for our country."

So what if he gave up millions of dollars to become a soldier! Tillman gave up his life. All soldiers killed in Iraq or Afghanistan gave up their lives -- they could give up nothing more valuable than their lives.

So, while I honor Tillman for his patriotism, I call into question the media's clamor to lionize someone merely because of the material wealth that had given him a higher profile than most of the kids who had merely given up their dreams.