Former Sniper: Rogen And Moore Overstepped Their Boundaries
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper" has been a hit with audience members – it earned more the $90 million in its opening weekend.
Certain members of Hollywood, however, such as Seth Rogen and Michael Moore, have been criticized for their controversial comments about the film. Rogen compared the movie to the Nazi propaganda film shown towards the end of "Inglorious Basterds," while Moore focused on snipers in general, calling them all cowards who will shoot you in the back.
Retired member of the Third Ranger Battalion, one of the most decorated snipers in American history and author of The Reaper: Autobiography of One of the Deadliest Special Ops Snipers Nicholas Irving responded to those comments with WPHT midday host Dom Giordano.
"Once people achieve that level of power in the Hollywood industry, they tend to overstep their boundaries and talk on things they have no really right to talk about. And to down Chris Kyle -- or any sniper or military member for that matter -- I just think it's highly disrespectful, and unless you've actually strapped up boots, carried a weapon and been shot at, you really have no right to say who we are as individuals or a community."
Irving is credited with 33 kills during his last deployment overseas.
"I wasn't even supposed to be in the infantry, let alone a sniper. I'm color blind and my eye sight is far from 20/20, but I'm a really, really good shot and that kind of speaks for itself."
While he considers himself lucky that none of his victims were women or children, it still doesn't stop some of those kills from haunting him to even this day.
"That detachment, being able to say 'you know what? It's either me or four of my guys, five of my guys, and I would rather take this guy out to save the lives of four guys.' I've been to funerals...seeing the moms and the dads who cry and things of that nature, I don't like seeing that, so I would rather not let another mom have to go be burying their son by killing a guy that wants to kill us."
