Posted by
Daniel Crandall on Wednesday, December 19, 2007 1:43:05 PM
In 2004 Hollywood found a film about a Medal of Honor awardee whose story was worthy of, at least minor, distribution.
The Conscientious Objector is about a truly heroic individual, Desmond Doss, who fearlessly served, as medic, the men of the 77th Infantry Division.
I am writing about it because I what I believe may have motivated the decision to honor Mr. Doss, who passed away on March 23, 2006. The film's trailer emphasizes that Doss served during WWII, refused to carry a gun on religious grounds and was mocked by his fellow soldiers and that the Army tried to force him out. But Doss was steadfast in his faith
and love of country. He refused to take what would have been an easy road. He wanted to serve America in the military but he would not do so in such a capacity that he might have to kill a man.
I think Desmond Doss's stand is very honorable. He deserves to be honored. However, it was not men like Desmond Doss who won WWII or any war for that matter. It was men bravely shouldered the responsibility of using violent force in order to confront evil.
I also wonder if the filmmakers behind this worthy work would be as willing to make a film about someone like
Sergeant First Class Paul Ray Smith, the first Medal of Honor winner who gave the last full measure of devotion while serving on the Iraqi Front in the war against Islamo-Nazism. I would be willing to bet that they don't even know who Sgt. Smith is.