He was a stern-faced sniper - and a soft-hearted Marine who handed out candy to kids in Iraq. He was a warrior who wrote poetry about life and death. ...
he had dreamed of joining the military ever since he was a little boy who liked to watch "M-A-S-H" on television and dress in fatigues and a camouflage shirt....
"He told me lots of times that he learned what could be accomplished .. if you put your heart and soul in it - and he put his heart and soul in the Marine Corps," says his father... "He was gung-ho from the time he signed his name until the day he died."...
[He] carried a Bible from his grandfather.... He kept it in his left shirt pocket next to his heart. Tucked inside was a photo of his wife and their two sons...
[He] had a full life outside the military. He liked to hunt and camp, take canoe trips and fish with his boys.
He was known as a charmer, a good talker, a champion of the underdog (always defending and befriending kids picked on in school) and though he was trained to fight and kill, he preferred the role of peacemaker.
"He didn't like turmoil," recalls his mother.... "He wanted everybody to be happy, to get along. ... He'd say 'Life's too short to sweat the small stuff.'"...
[A picture of him shows a] tough-minded Marine in helmet and combat gear - doling out candy from a plastic bag two months ago to schoolchildren in Iraq.
"He admired the Iraqi people," his father says. "He said, 'Dad, even though I can't understand a word they're saying, if we were back home ... we'd be buddies.'"
He seems to have been a very decent man. He could easily have grown to become the pillar of any number of smaller towns across the country. Who knows what good he might have accomplished in his life?
Might have, but won't, because Staff Sgt. Raymond Plouhar was killed in action late in June in Iraq. As we say around here, he gave all his tomorrows so that others might live today. He laid down his life, not for friends, but for strangers.
But millions of people will never know that Staff Sgt. Raymond Plouhar. Instead, they will meet a different person with that name. And they will think that person is the real Staff Sgt. Plouhar. After all, the movie they met him in was a "documentary," right?
He was featured in Michael Moore's antiwar documentary, "Fahrenheit 9/11," portrayed as an overzealous Marine recruiter who targeted poor kids....
The segment shows Plouhar and another Marine in a mall parking lot in a depressed suburb of Flint; it suggests the two men were cynically hunting for poor teens to sign up, rather than go to a wealthy suburb where they'd likely be rejected.
Of course, that's not now how Moore recruited Plouhar
Plouhar's father says his son told him he had been misled and believed he was being filmed for a documentary that would appear on the Discovery Channel. (Moore's office didn't return calls or e-mail messages seeking comment.)
"He cried when he found out what it really was," his father says. "He never dreamed that it was going to be something to slam the country, which he dearly loved."
And the pain of Moore's exploitation extended to Plouhar's family and friends
Leigh Plouhar says her husband asked her not to watch the film - and she never has. Nor has Stephen Wandrie, his friend of 20 years, who says Plouhar was hurt by the film, but told him: "You know what? I know what I do is good for this country and every one of those people I'm recruiting - those guys are my brothers."
Michael Moore is angry at those who lie to the people. He is angry at those who think their lies are just fine because they're in service of a higher agenda. He is angry at the way those lies have hurt people. He is using his skill as a filmmaker to make sure those who lie and hurt people feel the pain they cause others.
It's as if he said, You'll not get away with causing that pain; I have a camera and I know how to use it. But I wonder: does he feel any of the pain he has caused others as he pursued his higher agenda?
Neither Michael Moore nor his staff replied to AP reporter Sharon Cohen’s requests for comment; there’s still no comment posted on Moore’s web site about Staff Sgt. Plouhar. There is, however, a note “Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be soldiers.”
Staff Sgt. Plouhar seems to have known the special peace that comes to those who know false accusations will not affect their ultimate vindication. May his family find that comfort as they remember his sacrifice and service.
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