Rise Against - Hero Of War REACTION (VETERAN REACTS TO) I FELT THIS ONE (PATREON REQUEST) 

Never too old to share emotion brother. Sometimes its all that keeps us sane. Do not be ashamed.

No shame in crying no matter how old you are or your gender. Rise Against are also masters of gut punching you with emotions so doubly no shame

yes it absolutely was

Could have been a military dad........

Yes it was, they go in dpeth on this in an interview

Spot on, the whole songwriting choice was to underline the cyclical nature of Armed Forces recruitment here. Move on to the next kid, [T h a n k y o u f o r y o u r s e r v i c e].

DuBstep115 Well explained in fact that’s the punchline of this song

Wow ive listened to this song tons of times and always felt awkward that he still loves the US flag.. this makes so much more sense

executioner's willing citizens. stop volunteering. start a change.

I think he brought home the American flag. He's saying that it's gathering dust (not flying it anymore) but he still trusts it.

@@Ramon22282 Nah the last verse says she dropped a flag white as snow, and then he says he brought home THAT flag.

Dude, that sounds f***ing terrifying...

Yeah man you can never come back from something like that

I'm only 14, but thank you so god damn much for your service.

Good lookin out.

Why would you talk about this with strangers

" wrongly on memorial day" A lot of my family were in the service and this makes them SO MAD. At least know and understand what youre praising people

John Thorpe I’m not a soldier nor a marine I never went into the service because I didn’t want to be a veteran I know pain I know anger rage veterans go through so much shit that they are surprised that they have not killed themselves I have a flag of the marine corps hanging next my bed because it’s my fav branch I’m a different soldier everyday I struggle with major depression anxiety Tourette’s etc all my respect goes to the vets out there who served even though they were lied too about seeing the world.......welcome home stay home and never leave for war again ......hooah

the video implies that he shot a little girl carrying a flag to surrender to the american forces. So he committed a war crime in the name of the US and the song is about the horror of war; and the things it forces soldiers to do.

I just wanted to say that your mom is awesome.

Mine was a marine in WW2. He was never the same. We watched flags of our fathers and he said thats the closest thing he has seen that showed what actually happened and what he went through on Guadalcanal. He was 17 when they sent him to that hell. We may not have liked eachother but he knew that he was my hero.

Still counts.

It still counts, love from America

It always counts

You're totally right. With war in rare cases we may force them to use our political system which of course I think is great but this is never voluntary by the folks there and a violent solution. Afghanistan and Iraq war are useless killing of men on both sides. We should help the poor in those places peacefully rather than killing them.

The thing is, once they're there and see shit, they just want to come back home alive and with all their body parts intact. In order to do that, sometimes they "just gotta do what you gotta do". It's as human as it gets. War isn't about heroes, it's about sacrifices. Everyone partaking in it has to sacrifice something.

@@benitocamela6336 To me it is more about the institutionalized hero-complex justifying a system that keeps putting people in that position where they "gotta do what they gotta do" to come home safe - if not for yourself then to protect your buddies who rely on you. Be that by shooting a little girl that might carry a bomb ignoring your orders to stop or just taking part in seemingly smaller war crimes like sadism and torture against POWs. And the implied loyalty to your buddies to not rat them out for their crimes - some of which you have contributed to because "you gotta do what you gotta do".

Veterans disgrace us. It is self-service, as well.

IIRC you can go to military jail for disobeying orders

Reminds me of a one of dialogue in the move KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. Remember that howsoever you are played or by whom, your soul is in your keeping alone, even though those who presume to play you be kings or men of power. When you stand before God, you cannot say, "But I was told by others to do thus," or that virtue was not convenient at the time. This will not suffice. Remember that.

Lol duh

Or also This Is War by Smile Empty Soul

@Vanargand it seems it is you who massively misunderstands the premise of the song, it is most definitely an anti war song.

I dont know much about the peace corp, but I can tell you I served alongside many National Guardsman from all over the country on my deployments to the middle east. Reserve troops as well.

I did and I was looking for comments on it...

Kenshin Himura not really. Its more about anti war and how the soldiers get tricked into believing its for freedom or whatever excuse. But they find out the hell that is war

Not at all. It just portrays certain things that happen regularly ,stuff no one wants to talk about. The military ain't all grand certain ppl are snakes

Only an American could think that. The military is not perfect and it's actually pretty fucking important that war crimes are not just ignored. And a military is the enemy... to certain people. American military is an enemy to me as a non-American, and and the military of my country is the enemy to someone else.

Even though Rise Against/ Tim McIlrath is anti-war, it's not a bash against the military, but more of a bash against the people who think of them only as "Heroes" instead of what they went through. Song meaning The song starts out with an army recruiter asking the protagonist, a potential recruit, to enlist. With promises of adventure and money, he does indeed sign up. At the end of the song, the protagonist, now a veteran, recalls with bitter irony the army recruiter's promise that signing up would mean he could "see the world". The protagonist sees how destructive wars are, including the destruction of his own moral scruples, as the protagonist is convinced, after initially protesting, to join in and participate in the torture of a prisoner. The soldier repeatedly declares his loyalty and trust in his country's flag, but after killing a woman who he later learns was carrying a white flag, he changes his mind about his former flag-waving patriotism, instead putting his trust now in the white flag. Near the end, the veteran reacts with revulsion to those who see him as "A hero of war, is that what they see? Just medals and scars, so damn proud of me." Tim says he was expressing sarcasm because many people treat soldiers like heroes, even though many don't feel like heroes. Tim McIlrath wrote this song due to the violence in the war, but also for the troops that serve overseas protecting their respective countries.

Well that's life isn't it? Not black and white....

Insulting to whom?

​@@seankauder9721 The military. Maybe it's just my interpretation. To me it's about a guy that joins the military thinking he's going to be a hero and ends up doing awful shit 'because he's supposed to', with the implication that that's the representation of everybody in the military, and therefor they should not be regarded for their service. ei, "Everybody in the military does awful shit so fuck them."

@@matthewrud1911 Hey Matt, that is a valid point of criticism for sure. It's definitely meant to make the casual listener feel uncomfortable. From what I have read, I don't believe their intention is to be disrespectful to those fallen or currently in service. I think they picked a rather uncomfortable yet real scenario that may play out and told a story. Their hardcore activism is displayed deeply throughout many songs so it's meant to raise attention and make one think. But it takes a risk at alienating the masses; the very audience it intends to seek attention from with this story. I am a balanced individual so I try to see through it all, but yah the passages expressed here are not reflective of every outcome in Military operations. It's sort of the bigger picture, or the mentality that "War is all good and fun" in which they oppose I guess... Oh well, it has a great melody though!

It’s an anti war song I’ve been in the marine corps for 8 years and it is about how no one wins cause some people who do things that they can’t forget cause they are told to do it and fucks people up in the head

@@matthewrud1911 They based the song off letters they received from veterans of the US military. Sure, not all servicemen and women will have the same point of view, but the whole point of the song is to present a common perspective that apparently many soldiers share. Just because you may disagree with that point of view doesn't make it offensive.