Sunday Chris Hayes of MSNBC found himself smack in the middle of Controversy over a remark he made regarding US Soldiers and Heroism when speaking about the upcoming Memorial Day.
What Hayes said was “I think it’s interesting because I think it is very difficult to talk about the war dead and the fallen without invoking valor, without invoking the words “heroes.” Why do I feel so [uncomfortable] about the word “hero”? I feel comfortable — uncomfortable — about the word because it seems to me that it is so rhetorically proximate to justifications for more war.”
The Nations Liliana Segura was quick to chime in and say that the word hero is used to paint wars in a “righteous way” She then said “The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan aren’t righteous war… we can’t be afraid to criticize.”
The next day Hayes released a stamen apologizing for his comments saying: “On Sunday, in discussing the uses of the word “hero” to describe those members of the armed forces who have given their lives, I don’t think I lived up to the standards of rigor, respect and empathy for those affected by the issues we discuss that I’ve set for myself. I am deeply sorry for that…… But in seeking to discuss the civilian-military divide and the social distance between those who fight and those who don’t, I ended up reinforcing it, conforming to a stereotype of a removed pundit whose views are not anchored in the very real and very wrenching experience of this long decade of war. And for that I am truly sorry.”
