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The word “courageous” gets tossed around a lot in very wrong contexts. Case in point: Hollywood celebrities like Meryl Streep or Rosie O’Donnell who make an ostentatious show of “standing up” to conservatives. This is doubly true when said conservative is Donald J. Trump.
However, one individual who actually merits the title of “courageous” — Benghazi survivor Kris Paronto, a former Army Ranger — is sick of the false comparisons. In an interview with the Independent Journal Review, Paranto had a challenge for “actors pretending to be someone else” — try actually putting on a uniform.
Paronto, whose role in Benghazi was chronicled in the movie “13 Hours,” began by criticizing President Obama and his fealty to the cult of celebrity.
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“(Obama) turned the position of commander in chief into a pop culture thing and pulled away from what the office of the president is all about — leadership,” Paronto said.
“He wasn’t supposed to be a celebrity, he was supposed to be a dignified leader. Still, Hollywood was all over celebrity Obama.”
Paronto then criticized the celebrities who are being lionized by liberals for dropping out of Trump’s inauguration festivities. “You’re a monkey and somebody is turning the crank,” he said.
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“The only time I have a real issue with this at all is when these people are looked at as role models. When they back out, and publications like (The) New York Times or CNN put them on a pedestal for dropping out, it does a major disservice to Americans,” Paronto said.
“They’re not role models. There’s nothing courageous about sitting in your $5 million dollar mansion and looking down upon us. It’s arrogant, it’s pompous, and it’s not bravery.”
The Benghazi survivor then threw down the gauntlet at liberal activists in Hollywood.
“They’re all actors pretending to be someone else. Just because you played a police officer or military veteran, doesn’t mean you understand what it’s like to be in our shoes,” Paronto said.
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“So you know what, Meryl Streep, stop putting others down and go do something else. Be like Pat Tillman, drop everything you’re doing and put your life on the line. Robert De Niro, you played a cop in the movies, go be a cop on the streets.
“The same principle applies to these other celebrities. You wore a uniform as a costume. Try putting one on to serve your country.”
Paronto made it clear who he thought should really be getting called courageous.
“The real role models are the guy who goes and puts his life on the line for his country, the police officer who jumps in front of a bullet, and the EMT who treats the wounded on the scene, people who put others before themselves,” he concluded. “Those are the true celebrities.”
We couldn’t agree more. Thanks for standing up for real celebrities, Mr. Paronto.
Please like and share on Facebook and Twitter if you agree with what this Benghazi survivor said.
