Documentary Reflection

1.  Was there a specific scene that got to you? Describe and explain how it moved you (Angry? Curious? Delighted? Motivated?). Give a lot of detail, and really dive in to how it affected you. Don’t hold back.

The scene describing what transpired in the unfortunate events that led to Pat Tillman’s death.

Pat Tillman and his men were forced to split into two serials. Both groups had lost radio communication and were clueless they were approaching one another. Serial 2 responded by taking fire at Serial 1 -Tillman’s group. Serial 2 shot on two different occasions. At first, they killed an AFM member hitting him eight times in the chest. Pat with the quicks popped a smoke grenade causing the gunfight to come to an abrupt end Tillman’s group believed it to be over, however, serial two’s driver used the smoke to get to a closer vantage point. Once again, they stopped and along with the gunner of a mounted machine gun, they proceeded fire. It was reported in the documentary that the second firefight lasted for forty-five to sixty seconds long. That’s when Pat lost his life. From the perspective of Corporate O’Neal, pat lay flat on the ground with no head on his body. The troops who fired at their own comrades were inquired about their actions. They were asked if they were able to identify their targets and none of them could defend themselves. Some admitting, “I was excited”, “I don’t know. Others were firing and I wanted to stay in the gunfight” or “I personally never saw an enemy”.

This scene sounds like I’m in a video game. I don’t get how people do it. I don’t think I could ever take someone’s life and if I somehow was forced too, it would haunt me forever. What I’m hearing is wild to me. Not only were they oblivious to who they were shooting at, they continued fire for 60 seconds long and that was on the second firefight. It was cited in the documentary that there was no evidence of a single bullet being fired back at their direction. This scares me, these guys are trained to be killing machines. I know they’re in the military and they’re supposed to kill but it sounds so evil. It seemed as if they were looking to do more than just kill but fire until the body was disintegrated and practice shooting.

2. What surprised you? Why do you think it caught you off guard?

Even with evidence citing the generals knew Pat Tillman’s death was due to friendly fire, they were not held accountable. They lied to the Tillman family, the nation and turned his death into a propaganda tool to support the nation’s foreign policy wars. There’s many injustices that transpire in this country, however, there was clear evidence and yet, they still walked away scot-free. It was also surprising to me that the men who fired at their own team did not receive any consequence for their actions. What they did felt like poor negligence. They weren’t aware of who they were shooting at, evidence suggests rounds were never fired back, and their own team recognized they were being targeted by friendly fire (Why couldn’t they do the same?).

 Pat made only two requests when he joined the army: his motivation for enlisting to be kept private and not wanting to have a military funeral with honors. But the Arizona Cardinals released team interviews following the 9/11 attacks. Although he wouldn’t actually make his decision till six months later the interview became Pat’s explanation for why he dropped everything to join the army. During basic training Pat had a premonition, that if he died me might be used as a public relation stunt and that’s why he signed no on if he wanted a military funeral with honors- they held it anyways. When I perceive others, I always expect the best of them, that they do the right thing. In this case I expected the media and military to do the right thing and unfortunately in addition to lying about his death, they also violated his only two requests.

3. What questions remain after the viewing? What feelings stayed with you after the film? Did they “pop up” in your life in unexpected ways? When? How? What was that like?

What was going through the minds of the soldiers who fired at their own troops and killed Pat Tillman? Tillman’s group of troops didn’t fire back once. Tillman’s group were able to identify their fellow troops so why not them?  Why are there multiple instances in which the media and military fabricate the deaths or incidents of those who serve in the U.S? Like the false narrative of the Jessica lynch story the documentary provided. Why did the military feel the need to turn Pat Tillman’s death into a false heroic story and use him as a political propaganda tool? What are they getting out of it and why is it so important?

After watching the film, it made me think of all my peers who are enlisted in the army. What if they were to be involved in a similar accident? Would our military try to cover up their death as well? While in bed I pictured the scene involving the friendly fire interaction. If I was in their shoes what would I do? Would I try to run away? Would I have the courage to open fire on my own brothers to save not only my life, but my teammates as well?  It’s a horrifying predicament.

 
4. Why might we avoid including research in our summaries? What could go wrong?

Applying additional research may impede the authors claim or main idea. When including research there’s going to be perceptions from different points of view, further complicating the story line of the piece.