Comments on: Look Who’s a Military Historian

By: ninme

ninme — Mon, 01 May 2006 17:33:49 +0000

Now I’m going to have to read all your comments with a lithp, Brett.

By: Rueful Red

Rueful Red — Mon, 01 May 2006 12:43:04 +0000

LOL!

By: Brett_McS

Brett_McS — Mon, 01 May 2006 11:25:58 +0000

I'm not sure about "conspiring".

That's because your not paranoid. Enough.

By: Rueful Red

Rueful Red — Mon, 01 May 2006 11:03:05 +0000

“Despite his failures, Daffy, like the Greek hero Sisyphus, is a victim of injustice who continuously protests. And it’s his refusal to surrender his will to the whims of the conspiring universe that makes him heroic.”

That’s rather wonderful, though I’m not sure about “conspiring”.

99% boredom, 1% terror reminds me of a school I attended, only it wasn’t so much terror as discomfort.

By: Brett_McS

Brett_McS — Mon, 01 May 2006 10:39:42 +0000

You must know this little black duck.

By: Rueful Red

Rueful Red — Mon, 01 May 2006 09:45:50 +0000

Do tell.

By: ninme

ninme — Mon, 01 May 2006 07:03:09 +0000

Hmph.

Err, anyway, no, I can't imagine you would be. But you intrigue me: little black duck? What is this delightful new turn of phrase?

By: Brett_McS

Brett_McS — Mon, 01 May 2006 06:33:29 +0000

That’s what they say about combat: 99% boredom, 1% pure terror. Not the right profession for this little black duck. I can’t stand boredom, and I’m not too crazy about sheer terror, either.

By: SJ

SJ — Mon, 01 May 2006 06:27:56 +0000

Just an FYI that the comment is about a character Gyllenhaal played in a movie. A character based on the real-life memoir of an actual Gulf War vet. The quote is taken out of context and altered. The actual quote:

Jake Gyllenhaal on Boredom as an Enemy: “I think a soldier’s mind is as great of an enemy in the field as bombs or bullets. I think that’s probably what I feel like the movie is about. That when you use these techniques and you teach someone and you harness a pure time or an instinct in them, and then they’re not allowed to express that, I think the mind is confused by that. And yeah, the boredom then, when the boredom sets in, when you realize we’ve been here for 122 days and we’ve been sitting in the same tent and I’ve done a little too much masturbating, because it’s like you know, I mean it’s true. Sad, but true.

The interview, which also details how Gyllenhall gained new respect for the military from reading the book and making the movie, can be found here.

By: RC2

RC2 — Mon, 01 May 2006 01:20:07 +0000

My brother was actually there, and I can report what they did. Chemical weapons drills. Clean sand out of engines and weapons. Drink water. Repeat. Then when they actually went into Iraq (his unit was w/n 50 miles of Bagdad), they collected surrendering Iraqi soldiers and ate M&Ms. No aheming in his unit at least.