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Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Viewing Reality

One of the ironies about the Iraq War is that despite being the most heavily televised war in the history of mankind, the average American knows virtually nothing of what happened there. This is because while the media had access to troops, reporters largely stayed close to their hotels and weren’t on the frontlines. In addition to that, networks (including cable) ran with sanitized images, never lasting for more than the few seconds that needed for their sound bite.

Recently, I’ve been able to watch several videos shot by Pat Dollard, a former Hollywood agent who became an imbedded reporter. The videos he shot are raw, full of coarse language (he’s with Marines, after all), and violence (as it is a war). When I watched the first few videos, I was struck at how intense it was…and I had only watched about 45 minutes. Our troops dealt with this for hours, day in and day out.

You can watch some of the clips at his website here and he’s starting to air episodes of his documentary, Young Americans, on the Big Hollywood website, here. There is obviously a very big content warning. It should not be viewed by minors. Graphically (at least in the videos I’ve seen to date), it’s about on par with movies such as Black Hawk Down. The difference is that this is real, not a movie.

7 comments:

  1. I can't wait to check it out. Thanks, Peter!

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  2. My son is a screaming eagle, a part of the 101st Airborne; 19 years old and commands a black hawk. He is being deployed in March to Afghanistan.

    Watching footage from the civil war in Sierra Leone, W. Africa, just after I left that country and now watching these several clips brings a hightened sense of meaning to these words of Peter when he admonishes us True Elect Believers to "hasten" the coming of the day of the Lord.

    2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
    2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
    2Pe 3:12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

    Like I posted in an earlier thread on this blog, "war" is brutal.

    That one comment by the soldier in the last clip on fire fights is so prophetic, that "one lucky shot".

    Remember the "one lucky arrow shot" that hit the king of Israel, from 1 Kings 22 in the Bible?

    Here is my prayer regarding the "day of the Lord's coming":::>

    1Ch 16:31 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The LORD reigneth.
    1Ch 16:32 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof: let the fields rejoice, and all that is therein.
    1Ch 16:33 Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the presence of the LORD, because he cometh to judge the earth.


    In the mean time it would make perfect sense to me for the Saints to keep in mind the Words of Our Lord, Who is coming:::>

    Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

    This life is so so so temporal, fleeting and but for a moment of time in the Eternal Scheme of things. But afterwards, only those here who do the Will of Our Father there will be inclined to do it there when we leave here!

    The solution to the pollution is not dilution, it's absolution!

    If I don't die and go to Heaven before I die, I don't go to Heaven when I die!

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  3. By the way, one thing I neglected to mention is that Dollard was personally hit by an IED, which killed two of the Marines he was with and injured him in the blast, so he's got first-hand experience in more ways that just being there to document everything.

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  4. Thank you for posting this. Pat Dollard should be made an honorary Marine by the Commandant. As a Marine veteran of Iraq, I'm not thrilled about journalist...the exception is Pat. He captures things as it is.

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  5. Natamllc,

    Thank you for your willingness to stand with your son, and your sacrifice in having him overseas. As I have no children of my own, I cannot imagine what it would be like knowing my son is in harm's way. I will pray for you both.

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  6. I just watched a couple of them. Wow. Thanks, Peter.

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