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A Memorial Day conviction, titled “Sensible Patriotism,” that I shared on 5.29.21:

I’ve always preferred the terms “those who served” or “those who fell in service to our nation” as opposed to “those who gave their lives.”

My father, a former Marine Lieutenant who battled the Japanese at Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima (and who once confessed to having downed a few belts of Scotch with some fellow officers before the assault on Iwo Jima on 2.22.45), always dismissed the wording of the latter sentiment. He found it specious.

Nobody “gives” their life in combat — they fight as best they can to achieve victory or at the very least not get killed, and sometimes fate tilts against them. That’s it — that’s all it boils down to.

“White men are being addressed in this feminist environment, [such that] they feel like they can’t be themselves, [due to the prevailing notion of] toxic masculinity.

“We can talk about whether or not that’s true or how big of a problem that is, but what I don’t think is really debatable is that if you look at the net amount of images in the culture, there really aren’t that many portrayals of men right now [in which] men both embody classical masculine traits and they’re also pro-social, like they’re not assholes.

“The only exception is when they’re a superhero with blue lightning coming out of their ass.

“This wasn’t always the case,. If you look back [into film history] you’ll see all kinds of portraits in which men are portrayed in a more nuanced kind of way. And I think there’s an interest in that [right now], a hunger for that.” — Mark Boal, 49-year-old screenwriter of The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty.

I haven’t seen Mark since the Zero Dark Thirty days, but he looks more bulked up and alpha-male commando-ish these days. Still soft-spoken, but a different look, different vibe.

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