This week I wanted to write something about the recent movie that came out “American Sniper.” I have been going back and forth about this topic for two weeks now. I’ve been doing research, reading articles and watching videos, and I still haven’t come to a conclusion.

When I first saw the movie I loved it. I thought it was a good depiction of the story line and Chris Kyle was a true American hero. But after it came out, a lot of controversy about this story has come up and it has interested me. I thought how could anyone question if Kyle was a hero; he served his country and did what he was supposed to do. But I soon learned there was a lot more to this story than that.

I’m not going to give specific details about each side of the story. Everyone has his or her own opinions on this topic and all of you can do your own research and decide for yourself. I’m not here to sway your opinion in any way. I just advise you to know what you are talking about before you take a definite side.

From what I have read about Kyle, I’m not saying he was right or wrong about his war experience. I’m saying what we should realize is every solider goes through war differently. They experience it differently, they see different things, and what they take out of it is different. Therefore, every story is different. None of them are right or wrong. If you hear a war story from two different soldiers and they are different, it doesn’t mean they are wrong. I think that is something important we need to keep in mind.

With that being said, we need to respect that and also take into consideration that most of us do not know what it is like to go to war. Since most of us do not know about war, we are limited to what we can say about those who do. A lot of us can point fingers, but we can’t necessarily back that up because we truly don’t know what that lifestyle is like.

Before you form your opinions about soldiers and veterans, keep those three things in mind. One last thing I want to say is that I admire the notion of men and women who enlist in any branch of the military service. It is very courageous and a huge sacrifice they are willing to make.

If you are like me, it is hard to take a stance on this topic. On one hand you want to admire him for his service to this country, but you have also heard some not great things about him. Know that it is OK to feel a certain way, and know you aren’t necessarily wrong either way. It is something none of us will ever really know the truth about.