Say What!?
92-Year-Old Veteran Breaks the Law to Support Our Troops
It's hard to hate on Hyman Strachman. He's a 92-year-old World War II veteran who was featured in The New York Times over the weekend because he's sent some 4,000 boxes full of DVDs to members of our nation's military serving overseas. Sounds like quite a mensch? Well, that and one of the world's biggest bootleggers.
Shocked you, didn't I? Now you know why he ended up in the Grey Lady. But what really shocked me is the response Strachman's DVD piracy is getting from our troops.
They adore him! Literally, he's been dubbed "a hero to soldiers."
Even though they know exactly what he's been doing in his home in New York. Kind of ... odd, don't you think? Considering our military is charged with protecting the American way of life, and here Strachman is breaking American law. Shouldn't they be angry with him? They are supposed to defend our Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. And he's a domestic threat of sorts ... albeit in a pretty tame way.
The guys who spoke out on his behalf make a good case for him. The number one request from servicemembers serving far from home is movies. It's the kind of thing that keeps them entertained when they're off duty, the kind of thing that gives them an escape from the hard work they do every day, the kind of thing that connects them to home. And the only thing they get from movie studios is old-fashioned reel-to-reel films and projectors. It's like a bad flashback to the 1970s.
I respect the heck out of what they do, and I have donated many times over to charities that send boxes to our troops. I think they deserve something better than what they get right now.
I just don't think bootlegged movies are "better." I think Strachman means well, but what he's doing is really a slap in the face for our military. They fight for us so some guy can sit in his house stealing movies and costing the government thousands in taxes that are levied on the movie industry, costing the movie industry thousands that would be fed back into the economy via their employees' paychecks?
I don't hate Hyman Strachman. But I certainly don't think he's a hero.
Is this no big deal because it's a bad thing for a good cause or something so illegal you can't look past it?
Image via bizmac/Flickr
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Crissy Pines
Marla Goldstein Lewis
Sarah Sue Smeltzer
Robin Robinson
sammyk1976
Maybe if more people actually gave up $10-15 to help the soldiers overseas get through the shit-storms they live in day in and day out, people like Strachman wouldn't have to break the law to do what needs to be done... and yes, I said *NEEDS* to be done... living in a war zone is hell, and having a way to escape that is imperative.
So yes, breaking the law or not, I do think he is a hero for at least trying to help them survive hell. And the fact that he's a vet doesn't surprise me at all - he at least understands what they are going through, and knows better than anyone what they need.
Tami Becker Woller
he was not profitting from the efforts
TLC4theworld
I agree with Sarah. Besides the man has been there and done that to I'm sure a much worse extent. He is trying to help these people pass the time. To many kids get them selves into money trouble over there since they don't know what to do with them selves on their off time. Plus you have AAFES that is suppose to be our post exchange store that over charges. Where is the deal in that? At least his heart was in the right place.
Erica Wilkins
Kritika
I don't think he realized how serious of a crime it was, he's 92 years old. Those men come back traumatized, I commend this man for sending them whatever pieces of normalcy he could afford them.
Tracy L Caruso