Chris Kyle
Was the Most Lethal Sniper in American History Chivalrous in His Kills? Chris Kyle was a natural born killer from the first time he was handed a gun. Born in Odessa, Texas, he began hunting with his own rifles and shotguns at age eight. After he finished school, he became a professional bronco rider, but his career ended quickly after he injured his arm. After his arm healed he turned to the military for a job, but was turned down because of the pins in his arm. After a few months he received a call and was invited to the training for the Navy SEALS. He ended up becoming a sniper in SEAL Team 3 and served four tours of duty in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Over the four tours of duty, Kyle racked up 255 claimed kills and 160 confirmed kills. His longest successful shot was 2,100 yards or 1.2 miles, just outside Sadr City in 2008. Chivalric Codes were a huge part of a knight’s life, was developed to keep knights in check during a time where laws were difficult to come by. They generally consisted of honoring the church, protecting and serving the people, the lord of the land and the country, being honorable as a person, perseverance, honoring your enemy, protecting women and children, and to protect your fellow knights. Chris Kyle upheld the Code of Chivalry in many ways but in others he did not. These breaks in the code were not always his fault though, because of the radical change in war from the middle ages to now, and the decisions of whether to protect his countrymen or the values of chivalry. Kyle’s first kill was an example of a decision between elements of the code. A woman with a grenade was approaching a group of Marines. Kyle was reluctant to shoot a woman, which is generally against the Rules Of Engagement, and most soldiers’ moral standards. He hesitated before shooting her and saving his troops lives. He said afterward that he was angry at the woman for putting him in that situation. It was the only time he ever killed anyone other than a male
Cited: Kyle, Chris. American Sniper. N.p.: HarperCollins, n.d. Print. Seidl, Jonathon M. "This Navy SEAL Sniper Is the ‘Deadliest in U.S. History’ — Can You Guess His Longest Shot?" The Blaze. N.p., 2 Jan. 2012. Web. 04 Oct. 2012. <http://www.theblaze.com/stories/>. Smith, Terry. "What Are the Rules of Engagement With Military Use of Force?" EHow. N.p., 16 Feb. 2012. Web. 4 Oct. 2012. <http://www.ehow.com/way_5659354_rules-engagement-military-use-force_.html>.