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>> >> guest: all the sudden, there's the army recruiter and neighbor recruiter trying to pick you off and getting you to come to them, and i talked to each one, and i navy recruiter sold me on being a seal. >> host: you knew you wanted to be a seal? >> guest: everything he was telling me, which, of course, the recruiter built it up where it was more of a jason bourn thing, and seals do things you never hear about, and all great adventures, and you'll be thee most highly trairnedded person out there, and you'll have skills shooting and hand to hand, and i thought, all right, sounds great. if there's a best, i want to be the best. >> host: what was the training like? >> guest: realm, the initial boot camp to become a seal is called buzz, and that felt like seven months long standing there

with your feet shoulder width apart getting kicked in your junk. there was times i thought about quitting. i don't know if there was too lazy to find the bell to ring it, but somehow i made it through. >> host: when did you serve? >> guest: i went in in 1999 and got out in february of 1999 -- got out in novak djokovic of -- november of 2009. >> host: he's author of a 13-week best seller, "the american sniper: the autobiography of the most lethal sniper in u.s. military history." he's our guest here on c-span 2. the numbers are on the screen if you'd like to talk with mr. kyle.

>> we have the lines set up, and you can also contact us electronically and send us an e-mail at booktv@cspan.org. in your book, you write you were not the best shot at all in your class or before you went into the seals. >> guest: no, sir. i never claimed to be the greatest sniper. i was, you know, through sniper school, i was middle of the pack, and when i graduated, i about failed out of sniper school. it's just everyone tends to think when you get these number of skills that all the sudden you're a great sniper, and that's not the measure of a sniper. the measure of the true greatness of a sniper is to roll everything all in one. i mean, the stalking, the

observation, everything, and that's why in my mind why i think it's 93 confirmed killed. i think he is the greatest sniper ever in history, and not just america, but all over the world. he was a guy who went in by himself, snuck in, took his shot with a lot less capable weapons than we have today, and he took that shot and went out undetected, and i think that's the true measure of a sniper being able to get in, identify the target, take the shot, and get out. >> host: jim e-mails you, mr. kyle, how many unconfirmed kills do you estimate you have, or were all of yours -- did you train with the m25 white feather rifle? >> guest: no, i never used that rifle, and as far as the unconfirmed kills, you never count those. it's -- there's no point in keeping track of what could have

been or what might have been. just wasting your time, and your whole thing is you are out there to take the bad guys off the streets to make it safer for your guys and allow more of your guys to make it home, and the ideal thing would be, if i knew the number of lives i saved. that's something i would love to be known for, but you can't calculate that. >> host: what was your reaction at the time to a kill? >> guest: i mean, when you're looking at these people, you're not thinking of them more or less as people. they are a target because, you know, most of the time, they are actively engaging trying to kill your guys, and so you're trying to see yourself as the guardian angel to protect the guys on the ground who are in danger, and you just have to dehumanize it and remove yourself from it otherwise you don't want to think, do they have a family, do they have a job?

what have they done? you try, in your mind, think i want this guy, my guy, i want him to safely be able to go home. i'm going to take out this target to allow him to do that. >> host: where did you serve? >> guest: iraq. >> host: when? >> guest: i was over from the invasion in 2003. went back in 2004, and then i was attached to the marine corp. for the battle of fallujah, back to baghdad, and then on to habinia, a little on the street, and then i went back in 2006, spent time in the battle of rahmadi, and back in 2008, was sent out west, but then sent out a call for snipers to go to baghdad to secure the green zone. >> host: why did you leave the seals in 2009?

>> guest: being a seal, it's extremely tough on your marriage. we have extremely high divorce rate. it was about 95% divorced, and my wife and i constantly struggled trying to keep the marriage afloat, and even when you're home, you're training is not at home. you're never really truly home, and it was causing stress on the marriage, and it got to the point where i needed to decide, is it going to be god, country, family, or god, family, country, and i chose to hang it up and quit, and give everything back to my family now. >> host: and your wife is paya ? and you have children as well? >> guest: yes, sir, a son and daughter. >> host: george learner e-mails you, mr. kyle, after returning to the u.s. numerous times, did your tours have a

regressive impact on your family, and if so, what did the military do to it? >> guest: first time i went over; it was difficult. at the time, we were not getting the coverage over there. we were not able to watch it. as far as all the support that was behind the troops, but it was everybody protesting us so we felt like america was against us. we thought this is going to be vietnam. when we come home, are people going to sit on us? towards the end of the deployment, you know, we were able to get a few more channels and see a lot more of the coverage going on and all the support so it definitely helped us out, and then when i came home, it was difficult because you leave from a war zone one day, and you're home the next day. they just fly you straight home, and it takes you a bit. you know, i'd always -- you have a month off to where you just

react to yourself, spend a week at home, spend time with the family, get to know them again, and hope my kids remembered that i was daddy, but else the first time, i was upset coming home, and i saw everybody doing their day-to-day normal lives and thinking, i don't there's a war going on, there's people dying, but as i continued doing this, it came to the realization that that is why we're doing this. we're over there fighting so everybody can lead their normal day-to-day lives. that's what it's all about. >> host: chris kyle, what was your first confirmed kill? >> guest: we were in a city ahead of the marines, and we were trying to soften up some of the locations for them. we were not going to make it safe, but try to make it as little as possible and add something to it, and while in

the city, the marines started to approach, the people came out showing they were supportive of the military, they were not going to fight, and at that time there was a woman who came out, and she had something in her hand. i was watching her, relaying back to everything that she had, and what she was doing, and i was informed it was a chinese grenade and told me to take the shot. she started approaching the marines. at this point, i had never killed anyone, and so it was definitely made me pause, but also the fact that it's not a man. it was difficult. we tried to radio the marines to let them handle it. i didn't want to have to be the one to take the woman's life. we couldn't reach them on the radio, so i ended up having to take the shot, but in my mind, she was dead anyway. she was going to kill herself with the grenade as a suicide bomber or die by my bullet, and

i'd rather shoot her than to sit there and watch her blow up the marines. >> host: mr. kyle writes, "as the americans organized, the woman took something from beneath the clothes and yanked at it. she set a grenade. i didn't realize it at first. looks yell lee, i told the chief describing what i saw. it's a grenade. it's a chinese grenade. take a shot. i hesitated. they tried to get the marines on the radio. we couldn't reach them. shoot! i pushed my finger against the trigger, i shot. grenade dropped. i fired again as the grenade blue up. it was the first time i killed anyone on the sniper riffle and it's the only time i killed anyone other than a male combatant. first call from author in

virginia. go ahead. >> caller: hey, thank you for your service, everybody's service in iraq and in afghanistan. my question is if you could speak to the other wives on behalf of their sons and daughters who die over there, what would you tell them about the war and about why? >> guest: well, i mean, i appreciate their sacrifice, and, in fact, i'm very close with some of them because some of those that did die were my guys, and i remain close with those families. as far as telling them their sons, their daughters sacrificed, and was which worth it? you know any war no matter where it is, not a single american

life is worth it, but for the overall cause to be able to make a place safer in the world, i mean, these guys and girls are out there putting their lives on the line, and they are true heros. there's no pause. they are out there because their country. you don't have to believe in the war. you don't get to choose where you go. you have that sense of honor that you're going to serve this country no matter where congress or the president tells you that you're going to go. you just go. you do your duty. you're fighting for the guy or the girl on the right and left of you. you know, war out there, i was not really fighting for iraq. i hate to say it, but i was not fighting about america. i was fighting for my guys. i wanted to ensure every one of my guys came home. >> host: the reminder of what we fought for caused tear, blood, and sweat from all of us. i've lived the literal meaning

of the land of the free and home of the brave. it's nots corny to me, i feel it in my heart. i feel it in my chest. in a different chapter, you write, when i was heading out, i passed a small group of protesters demonstrating against the war. they were protesting the wrong people. we didn't vote in congress. we didn't vote to go to war. i signed up to protect the country, and i do not choose the battles. it happens that i love to fight, but i do not choose which battles i go to. i had to wonder why these people weren't protesting their congressional offices in washington. you are on with america's sniper. >> guest: thank you, gentlemen. my question is in the wake of the trayvon martin case and the shooting at the college in oakland last week, i think it

was, and the billion other cases like that, virginia tech, and those kinds of cases, what do you think of this gun culture we have in america where basically anyone who wants a gun can get one and use it if they like and specifically, what's your opinion on gun control. thank you very much. >> host: mr. kyle? >> guest: i'm 100% behind the second amendment, the right to own and bear arms. i mean, i'm here in texas, and that is a big part of the culture here. it's my right to be able to have it, but it's also everybody's responsibility to learn the safeties and learn everything about those weapons. there are certain people that don't deserve the weapons. the people who go out and actually shoots it. now, as far as the trayeven on martin thing, i have not kept up with it. i don't know all the fights, and for the most part, i heard one

side of the story. i can't comment on that one. all of these school shootings, yeah, especially out in california, i know it's difficult to be able to carry a gun, only a few people are legally able to do that. i don't know why this guy was doing that, but apparently, gun control, though, itself, the only thing it's going to do is take the gun out of the law-abiding citizen. the criminals are still going to have them. >> host: carl from kentucky e-mails you, mr. kyle. what inspired you to write the autobiography? >> guest: actually, i was dead set against it. it was something i felt like these guys who got out and did this kind of thing, they were selling out, and i did not want to be a sell out. it's basically taking my pride and cashing it in now for publicity. i was completely against it. as i found out there were two

other authors actively seeking my story, they were going to write the book, and if the book was going to be written, i wanted to ensure it was done the right way. i didn't want someone else writing a book about me and it's another story of, oh, look at me and what i did. this gives the credit to the proper people. the guys around me that were the true heros, and the only reason i look good is because of those guys and their heroics. this story gives credit to those whether it was the seals, soldiers, or marines. those guys who fought around me, beside me, they were awesome. i owe them everything. i'm calling them out, and putting them up on a pedastool letting everybody know, hey, this is what goes on overseas. the stories in my book, they are not just unique to me, a seal, they are unique to every combat and vet. these are the hardships they face. they may not have gone through

the exact same story as i did, but very similar. this is just raising the awareness of, hey, what your troops are going through over there. at the same time, you hear my wife telling the hardships of the family back home. when someone deploys and go overseas to fight a war, it's not just them that's in the fight now. it's the entire family that's left behind. i just -- this whole point behind this is to knock myself down because, you know, i don't even care about the numbers. i don't want the hype, but i will stand up, and i will be a voice for the rest to ensure they get the proper thank you, and today, there's a lot of lip service. i'm not saying people don't mean it, and going in the airport and saying thank you means a lot to the guys, but why not take it a step further and show our thanks? you know, random act of

kindness. you don't have to give money, but cook them meals, baby sit so they can go out on a date. just little random acts of kindness to show your thanks. that will blow them away. >> host: chris kyle, this is written with a lot of swearing in the book. >> guest: yes, sir. in the military, there is a lot of stuff. that is part of the military culture. it is a rough, rough type of society, and we're not politically correct, so it's -- they don't talk like that on a daily basis, especially now in the civilian world, but there, and in that time, it's also a way of a stress reliever. you're constantly in those situation, and it's a way of voicing it and getting it out and then moving on. >> host: you write about how your wife, taya, heard one of your fire fights. >> guest: yes, sir.

it was something that i never intended. i didn't realize that the phone was not turned off, but i also thought i was calling at a good time, usually at night, we're not attacked, and a so happened # this night we were, and unfortunately, she was still on the line. >> host: what was her reaction? >> guest: definitely upsetting. i mean, there were several times to where when i could call home, and when she would answer the phone realized it was my voice on the other line that she'd cry. there were a couple times where we're in a helicopter crash, i'd come back and tell her in case you see it on the news, the media call seals special forces. special forces are whey everyone calls the green berets. special operations, that includes everybody. i would always come back saying hey, i was in a crash.

if you hear about it, we're fine, no big deal. another time i was not able to call her back, and i was not in the helicopter crash this time. it was actually others, and it went down, killed everybody on board, and same thing, when i called, she broke down. >> host: how many helicopter crashes were you in? >> guest: two. >> host: how many times were you injured? >> guest: several. i don't exactly know how many times. >> host: were you ever shot? >> guest: i was shot twice. >> host: where? >> guest: i was shot in the -- well, i took a round in the top of the helmet, in the back, and one in the side. >> host: how long did that put you out of service? >> guest: well, fortunately, for me, it was, you know, either superficial wounds, but the one in the back, especially, hit the body armor that slowed it down just enough where it was basically just barely punctured my back. it was no big deal.

no time. get it cleaned up and back in the fight. >> host: mark in virginia beach, you're on with chris kyle, former navy seal. >> caller: hey, chris, how are you doing? listen, i appreciate so much your work that you've done with your acts of duty, and you talk about, you know, not your pride and that stuff, but what do you think about people who leave active navy and continue their work as a contractor? what's your thoughts on that? what's next in your life after the book. thank you for your time and help. >> guest: thank you, sir. as far as the contractors, i mean, you have these guys that this is what we're trained to do, and some of the guys have degrees, others don't, but it's what we know and love. you go in to be a contractor, and what you miss with you leave are the guys.

you hate to give up. to be a contractor, you're surrounded by those guys again, and then you can kind of do the same style of work. it's mainly protection, but at least you're getting paid, feeling well, and spending time overseas with the guys again. i respect that. the job's going to get done, so why not be the one to make the money doing it? not that all the contractors out there or the loud cowboys that are just shooting everybody up. there's only been a few incidents or some incidences where someone spun off a reservation and did something stupid, but for the most part, they are out there every day trying to help out still. you don't hear about it because they don't mess up. as far as me, i'm prepped international, which it does have a contracting side, but i am the training side. we train the military trying to give back to them, help them

prepare before they deploy, but also law enforcement, helping those guys. they are going -- they are the first responders here, and i want to give back to my community and ensure these guys are prepared. it's a one-stop shop, and you come here, and now you know everything, but at least i have another tool for you to put in your tool box that hopefully it comes in handy and helps somebody out, and i have the civilian side where the corporate retreats or marksmanship training where we have all of these machine guns so you can go out and things that you can't own, the company does own, and we can bring them out, and you can shoot and have fun. >> host: chris kyle, you have a photo in the book of a platoon of seal team 3, and several of the faces are blacked out. why is that? did this book have to go through an official setting? >> guest: yes. the faces are blacked out, the

guys are out, but out of respect for them, i wanted to protect their identity, but also the guys that are still active. i mean, we try to conceal our identifies, not saying, hey, look at me, i'm a navy seal. as far as going through channels, yes, when the book was written, it was heavily involved with some of my buddies helping me with the different stories because i couldn't remember all of them. they were relaying some of the stories back, and then jogging our memory, but i had to turn it in to the dod, the department of defense, they did a chack, all the seal team, and everyone you worked on it checked off on it to ensure you didn't say anything that was classified or anything that you're going to more or less -- you don't want to hurt a lot of people if you don't have to. >> host: was anything taken out of the original manuscript? >> guest: a few things were taken out, yes, sir. >> host: lisa, north

carolina. you're on booktv with chris kyle. >> caller: hello? >> host: lisa, please go ahead with your question or comment. >> caller: hello? >> host: we're going to move on. katie in nebraska. hi there. >> caller: i just wanted to thank you. i never call on the phone, and i was ready to hang up, but i just wanted to know that my dad was post commanderring and of the american legion, and on memorial day, we all marched out, out of town and went out to the cemetery to pay respects, and the guy shot off the gun, and it was just so awe-inspiring for me as a kid to see this. my grandmother was post commander of the american legion for women, and i just wanted to say that coming up now, and i'm going out there to march by

myself, and just thank you very much. >> guest: thank you, ma'am, and thank your family for everything they have done and are doing. i really appreciate it. that's one thing that we do as a family on memorial day. there's a national cemetery out here, and we take the entire family out there, and we'll find a tombstone to lay a rose on to show the kids that we are honoring these guys who have come before us and paid the ultimate sacrifice, and i want them to understand it and be supportive of the military. you don't have to support the wars. i don't care about that. the men and women wearing thatup form are true heros. like i said before, they don't decide where they are go, but they are willing to do what they country asks. >> host: chris kyle joining us from dallas, and darrell from california, you're on booktv talking with chris kyle.

>> caller: hey, how you doing? >> host: please, go ahead. >> caller: can you hear me? >> host: we're listening. >> caller: all right. i just want to let you know that i do appreciate all that you're doing for our country, and other countries because it's very important to have someone like you available, and i know that all you guys risk every bit of your lives to do this, and i just want to cry out for you that when someone come up missing, i do have worries and heart because it takes it to a level that we appreciate every bit of your skills because that is the most important factor to winning the wars. i just want to let you know you're my hero and you'll always

be my hero. my dad fought from 1941 to 1944 in that war. he's my hero today. you know, and i wish they'd open up doors better for you guys to have conversation for what you do because, you know, it's important. my dad took me to see on may 4th, 90 years of surviving that, and so i just want to let you know, you are appreciated. >> guest: thank you, sir. i really appreciate that, and i really respect for father for everything he's done, and i no longer wear the uniform, so my heros are all of those men and women wearing it, and the men and women who came before us, they have definitely set the bar high, and those are some high standards to try to live up to.

>> host: chris kyle -- [inaudible] >> guest: not as far as i know of. being a sniper is still being on the front line, and the last that i have was told, anyone in combat, the closest to being on the front lines as a woman was to be a pilot. >> host: next call from dave in oklahoma on our iraq-afghan vets line. go ahead, dave. >> caller: good morning. i'm a 7-year veteran, been seven times. i understand everything you're saying. thank you for showing me the way. i failed out of marine force school, so i was there with you.

2002-2009 -- [inaudible] >> guest: thank you for all of your service, and, you know, failing out of seals school, you know, just because i made it through doesn't make you any better than anybody else. it was just different strokes for different folk, and there's definitely some outstanding people in all the other branches, even just regular grunt. there are some true fighters and warriers there, and i just respect the hell out of everyone wearing that uniform. >> host: this e-mail from john of san fransisco. mr. kyle, have you read "jarhead," a marine corp. sniper in the 1990s. if so, what did you think of the book? >> guest: honestly, i have not. most of the books -- well, i've read carlos because i idolize the man, otherwise the books i

read were fiction. in fact, i was not a big reader. >> host: what about markus' become? >> guest: i did read that. he's a good friend of mine, and i definitely wanted to support him, so i bought the book. i definitely read it. it's a tough one to read. i appreciate his story and, again, in that book, he's not saying, hey, look at me. he's trying to highlight the friends he lost and show the true heros that they were. >> host: next call for chris is from chicago. good afternoon. >> caller: good morning. mr. kyle, i saw you on your previous publicity tour on the o'reilly factor, and you mentioned you had governor jesse ventura, and i saw an interview

that it did not take place in a bar in california. it's obvious someone is lying. is it you or the governor? what is going on here? it seems that if he didn't lie, would you call out a navy seal, someone well respected, a governor like governor ventura. >> guest: my intention was to never call him out. it happened on a show, a caller called in and says, well, tell him this story about this because there were other people that know this that were there, but as far as anything else, i'm not even going to talk about it at this time. >> host: you do write about jesse ventura in your book, and did he notch to you? >> guest: oh, he is. >> host: that's unsettled at this point? >> guest: yes, sir. >> host: in california, ralph, you're on the line with chris

kyle. >> caller: yeah, kyle, i'm a marine, 68-72, so i know who you are talking about when it comes to vietnam. my question to you though, was, talk little bit about honor. civilians don't seem to understand what it means in the military, especially the marines, special ops forces, what honor really is. thank you. >> guest: well, thank you for your service, sir, and i apologize for the reaction you got when you came home. as far as the honor, it's, you know, when you have the flag flying and the national anthem is playing, i get chills. sometimes i get choked up. it's everything that flag stands for a guy died allowed me to be at that sporting event or wherever i may be hearing that song and seeing that flag, i mean, you are willing to put

everything on the line, if you're willing to die for your country whether you believe in the cause or not, just because your country says we need this, you're going to do something for the greater good, and that was one the big things i had a problem with when i got out of the military was my whole job, it was all for the greater good. it was for everybody in the country, and now that i'm a civilian, it's for my own good. it's definitely caused problems. i mean, i don't know, i grew up extremely patriotic. i love this country. i love the troops. even before i enlisted, but i don't really know how to explain it. it's just a burning sensation inside of you that you love this country no matter who is in charge. if you're democrat, republican, or what or how bad you think things might be here, this is still the greatest nation in the world. i mean, there's no other place i'd rather be, and so it's just

that love of this country, and you're willing to do whatever the country asks of you. >> host: where did you grow up, and what were you doing before you joined the navy? >> guest: born and raised here in texas. i moved when i was young, and my dad worked for the phone company so we moved around a little bit all over texas. when i graduated school, i ended up going to college. it was a smaller college, and it was done? stevensville, texas, and when i was down there, i was working on ranches and i decided that i was going to -- i had two dreams in life, one was to be a cowboy, and the other was to be in the military. ives down there doing rodeos, working on the ranches, and i figured why do i need to be? school? i quit college. i kept working as a cowboy for a

living traveling around texas on different ranches, and new mexico and colorado, and eventually i figured out, all right, well, i've done this long enough, i have one other dream, so now it's time to do it. >> host: who are scott mcewen and jim? >> guest: scott, he's a lawyer in san diego. he's a man that i met through another former team guy that being around and hearing stories from some of the guys and talking with me, he's the one that approached me and said you need to write a book, and i want to help you do it. he got me in touch with harper collins who ended up wanting to publish this book, and jim is the actual author. he's the man i spent the time with, extended period of period of time -- relaying my story to him, and he

recorded it and took notes and put it into a story format that would grab the reader and get my points across. >> host: edward in houston, go ahead with the question or comment with chris kyle. >> caller: yes, i'm watching your program right now, and i wanted to find out if there's any information on the company mentioned earlier that he can send me through mail? my computer's not exactly active. i'm trying to find out as much information on the company he talked about. >> host: why is that edward? >> caller: something i've been curious about for awhile, and i have not really had any family or anything like that, and now that i'm older, i'm thinking about it, but i don't know if i can follow through. i'm just curious about it, and i wanted to find out if there's any information he can give me. >> host: chris kyle?

>> guest: i think you're talking about the company i mentioned earlier. the training side that -- it's basically the military outsources, and a lot is training. it's awarded to dod contractors that they'll send different units to places all around the united states. there are several training companies, and we just happen to be based in texas. we have to have these around the united states, but we train them not just in sniping, but in offroad driving, natural driving, hand-to-hand, anything that deals with weapons, all the different tactics we're teaching the military and the law enforcement, and for the military, we've hiredded -- it's not just seals. you know? i am or was a seal, but there's a few more working with us, but i have a lot of, you know,

special forces, marines, army, because when i have other units coming in, i don't want just a field being up there and people thinking, oh, he's a seal, he thinks he's better than me. no, i had a team of guys from all branches coming together saying, here, look, this is something that can help, and then sometimes army and marines, you might have a little different lingo, but now you have that guy there who can speak your speak. we do the same with law enforcement. we have the cops involved, heavily involved. there's military instructors in there because i feel some of the stuff the military does can help to benefit police. it's the same thing the police do. it helps the military and gets a center going between everybody, get everybody talking and try to come out with the best possible solution for everyone.

>> host: chris kyle, what's the website? >> guest: it is craft -- [inaudible] >> host: next call is from jeff in south carolina. a navy vet, go ahead, jeff. >> caller: hey, chris. i just want to say i appreciate everything you've done. i served from 2000 to twiex in iraq, well, not the whole time in iraq, two tours there. i also did others, and i got out and discovered the same thing you did. there's a lot of deal with. i became an slt officer, did that for a few year, and i really understand what's going on in our lives and as an individual. go into that for people.

you're not a cold-blooded killer as much as you're doing a job. thanks, man. >> caller: thank -- >> guest: thank you for your service. as far as being a sniper like i said before, i'm not out there trying to rack up kills and getting the huge numbers. i don't care about the number, and i would love to be known by the number of people i was actually able to save, but i'm out there to ensure the safety of everyone on the street. i want everyone there with me to be able to come home. it's not just those guys who i'm protecting. i'm protecting civilians in that location where i'm at. the open air markets, we were there -- excuse me -- we were there to be able to provide that security so they could come out and sell their goods without having to worry about someone snatching them off the street or blowing them out. i mean, they were out there

ruling in fear by cutting heads off and torturing people. we're trying to make the faith, and you can't think of a person that you're shooting as an actual person. i mean, otherwise it's going to tear you apart. you can't think of their family or anything. you're just -- you're there to provide safety for your guys and the civilians that are out there, and like you said, it is -- it is a job. it's a difficult job, and, you know, some people are seeing comments, and i've been called a coward for hiding in a location where no one can see me and shooting a guy from a mile away. well, there's a reason i'm shooting a guy from a mile away because i was not close enough, and there was someone who was close enough that he was fixing to kill. wherever i reach out to get you, to provide security, i will do it or did. it's unfortunate, but war is

hell, and we're not going over there to hand out flowers and cookies. we're called in because it hit the fan, and we're there to make it stop. >> host: rachel tweets to you on becoming a sniper, is there some kind of aptitude test for that? just have a good eye? how does one get assigned as a sniper? >> guest: well, as far as being assigned a sniper, we were not allowed at the time to be a new guy, a brand new guy that's never deployed to be a sniper. you had to show that you were responsible and mature enough to be able to conduct yourself and possibly pass through the course, and then my chief nominated me to be able to go when i got back from my first deployment. when you go, as far as the aptitude test, honestly, i think that's something that they've all been trying to figure out, that what kind of person does it take. honestly, i don't know. you know, i'm not a very patient

man, so patience, i don't think is a requirement of being a sniper. it's professional -- it's just -- it's your professional discipline of doing the right thing at the right time and knowing when you have to pay attention to detail and just take your time, slow down, make you have to -- call it a reveg, put the vegetation back on your suit or coming into a new environment, and it's not the same vegetation that you have on you, so you have to take the time to take that old stuff off, put the new stuff on, and it's kind of like integrity, doing the right thing at the right time and able to concentrate on the weapon and shoot and actually be able to learn all the things involved with the actual shooting portion. there's actually a lot of math involved, especially the further

out you go. >> host: you're watching booktv on c-span2 with chris kyle author of best selling book, "american sniper," we have 15 minutes left, and robert is active duty? >> caller: yes. i just wanted to say thunk for all of your service. i joined in 1985, and i'm still certainly in. i just -- i was away on tdy last week, and i saw your book, and i picked it up, and i want to tell you it's a fantastic book. i have not been able to put it down, and i think i have like 20 pages left. thank you, again, for everything. >> guest: well, thank you, sir. thank you for everything you have done and everything you continue to do for us. you are the reason that this book is out there to draw awareness to your sacrifices.

hopefully, the public will then lift you up and say thank you and show you thanks. you know, the book, all of my portion of the proceeds are going back to the two families of the guys i lost. mark lee and ryan joe, and then the other third of that money is going back to charities to help vets, so i am out here promoting this book and, you know, this is not a happy-go-lucky book. those were some of the best moments of my life, but also some of the worst. every time i do this book tour and talk about this, you relive it, and then you get stressed and, you know, especially the first time i was talking with the author, you feel like you got run over by a mac truck. you know, i'm doing this for these guys baa i am highlighting them, and i'm not going to sit here and give you lip service. i'm going to show you too by

giving this money back to tease guys. >> host: what was the book tour like for you? >> guest: it was fun, but at the same time, it was stressful. you're worried that there's always haters out there, and you wonder when is that hater going to come up and confront you. will they throw something at you? spit on you? fortunately, i have yet to see that, but it is emotional at times. i had some of the family members stand in line and wait to be able to get up there and sign a book with me. i love seeing the people. they come up and they are nervous because they want me to sign the book. i keep telling me, i swear, you're not as nervous as i am. i'm not good in big groups of people, and one-on-one, it's difficult for me, but i do enjoy it. i do love seeing these guys in uniform standing there in line, and, in fact, you know, the

first one i did was here in dallas, and it was a rainy night. it was the night of the national championship between alabama and lsu, and i thought, well, i was mad actually because i wanted to watch the game, but my publisher scheduled it. i said, that's all right. hardy anyone will show up, i'll still catch it. 1200 people later and the game was over. it was an awesome turn out. all of these people are now coming out and saying thank you, you've opened my eyes. in fact, i had a woman write me a letter saying, you know, i was not just against the war, but against the military. she was raised in a military family, and she hated them. after reading my book she goes, i understand. she said it made her cry and opened her eyes to where now she supports the troops. i find it amazing that this book is reaching out and touching people and opening some eyes,

and when i'm doing these book signings, all the people stand in line to meet me. it blows me mind, but if they are going to stand there in line to meet me, i'm going to stand there. i'm not going to sit behind the desk and just sign a book. i'm going to stand. as long as you stand, i'm going to substantial doubt. i sign everybody's book, and i try to talk to you a little bit so i want it to be personal. i want you to know that i'm a real person. i'm you know average everyday guy, and if you want, i'll come around the table, and i'll take a picture with you. i love meeting the kids. they bring me pictures and drawings that they've done. it's nice. >> host: this is the sub chapter, don't tell my mom. one kid didn't make it, lying on his back crying in pain. i started laying down fire, ran out to grab him and pull him

back. when i got to him, i saw he was in bad shape. i dropped an arm under him and hauled him backwards. i managed to slip, fell backwards with him on top of me. i was so tiredded and winded i just layed there for a few minutes in the line of fire as bullets shot by. the kid of 18 years old. he was badly hurt. i could tell he was going to die. he said, please don't tell my mom i died in pain. i said, i don't know who you are kid, i'll make it sound great. he didn't hear me say everything was going to be okay. marines lifted him off of me, put him in the hummer, took out the shooting positions for the fire had come from at the other end of the alley. i went on back to the block and continued the fight. next call is from florida.

shawn, you're on with chris kyle. >> caller: thank you, chris. i just wanted to say thank you for your service. i'm a vet. served in iraq and kuwait. came to florida, and dedicated a seal memorial, and now it was very touching, very moving, and just great to be able to see a lot of the seal guys that get out and do it every day. comment on seeing the flag and seeing, you know, the national anthem, star spangled banner, and we were at a concert, and he played "american soldier," every hair on my hair stood up, and i had a tear in my eye, and they don't get it as much. my question is, i got 17-year-old and 18-year-old kids. what's your advice to the next

generation of kids who want to join the military and train the special ops and maybe not just special ops, but just join the military and support their country? thanks. >> host: chris kyle. >> guest: thank you for your service. i appreciate it. as far as the kids, you know, i've got two kids myself. i'm never going to push them towards the military, and i'm never going to push them away because one great thing, the military, it is a volunteer force. if you're going to be there, i want it to be because you want it. you're going to understand that hop nor that goes into serving your country. as far as preparing them, i mean, they need to know that when you sign up to go into the many -- military, there's a high likelihood, especially now, that you're going to go to war. prepare yourself. you may be called upon by your country, put your life on the line, and possibly give your

life for everybody else's safety here, and a lot of people say, well, they don't understand what figging over there. that's fine. you don't listen to the people who come out against the war because what they need to be doing is protesting congress, protest others, all the politicians, but leave the military guys alone. they are out there doing a job. it's an extremely honorable job, and you're going to have some of the best moments of your life. you're going to have a brotherhood, and you'll never loose contact with those people. they will be your family. you're going to have some of the worst moments of your life. it's going to be your extreme ups and your extreme lows. just be prepared. >> host: matt from washington, go ahead with your question or comment. >> caller: hi, chris. thank you so much for taking so much time and talking with us and speaking today. thank you for your service, and thank you for your sacrifice.

thank you for the family and everything you've done. the story, i can't wait to read the book. thank you for your advice that you're giving, just with what we can do for our neighbors, our family members that come back, not just the simple thanks for your service, but, you know, what can we do for you. when -- can you go more into that? did you see "act of valor," and did you like that? >> guest: i saw it. i liked it. i saw it one time, it was -- i don't know what they called it, but they gave us a special showing of it, and it was military guys in there, and it was emotional. a lot of those different things i was involved with, and each of those missions were the mission, but it definitely hurt to watch it, and the next time i watch

it, it will be in my own home with no one else around. as far as giving back to the guys and showing your thanks, a simple little thing, you know, if they own their house or if they have a house that has a yard or something, go mow their yard for them. cook them something whether it's a meal or cookies or say do you need this or that chore done? it's simple little things. it takes your time. depending on what you want to do, it could take 5 minutes of your time or all day long, depending on how much you want to do. these guys are out there willing to die for you. i feel like now it's our duty to give back to them, make sure that they know that we appreciate everything that they are doing because i don't think most of the public fully understands and grasps what these men and women are willing to do for our safety and security. they are willing to die for us.

people that they don't even know, people they'll never meet, but they are willing to die for us. the least we can do is take time out of our days, and everybody's day, i know, it's extremely busy, but it's not going to do anything but make you feel better inside. we've. doing retreats for these guys, taking them out hunting, fishing, doing different things with them to get them out and say, look, i love you, thank you, this is what i'm going to do for you. let's go do this. there's other organizations out there, and one of them i've been involved with is called sitco. one thing i got out, i started drinking a lot. i got way out of shape, refused to work out, and i got depressed. i started working out again, got into shape, and when i did, my head cleared out. i went to this guy, and i said, hey, this helped me. you have some old equipment for

something cheap that i can buy to help put in the vets' homes because the vets, if they were like me, when you're out of shape, you don't want to go to a gym and then people look at you and oh, you used to be that, whatever. you feel bad about yourself then or the injured guys coming back, they don't want to go to a gym and have people stare at them. i turned this thing into a huge organization, a non-profit now to where we're taking brand new expensive equipment and we put it in the girls' and guys' homes so they are better within, but there's private trainers too if you want. there's therapists if you need it 6789 we're not just trying to get the body back, but help you with everything. ptsd is nothing to be frowned upon. they are a part of society. they gave to us. they can be trusted. it's nothing to be looked down on. we need to help them. we owe it to them. >> host: chris kyle writes i

never believed the iraqis would turn it into a functioning democracy, but i thought at one point there was a chance. i don't know that i believe that now. it's a corrupt place. i didn't risk my life to bring democracy to iraq, but for my buddies, to protect my friends, and fellow countrymen, went to war for my country, not iraq's. my country sent there so that bullshit wouldn't make its way back to our shores. i never cared about the iraqis. betty in denver, you're on with chris kyle. >> caller: thank you. first of all, thank you for serving, and i just want to say that i come from a long line of military family as well, and i remember my dad and brother both fought in vietnam at the same time, and my mother was just real tough, and thick skinned, and i remember as a child we were not