WAR IS HELL, AND BY "HELL" I MEAN "AWESOME"

Chris Kyle isn't my hero but, well, this is for a good cause:

Seeking to raise funds for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Nashville-based Gibson Guitars has produced a one-of-a-kind Les Paul inspired by former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle.

The guitar will go up for auction Thursday at www.charitybuzz.com/chriskyleguitar with a starting bid of $3,000. Proceeds from the auction, which closes May 5, will benefit the Guardian for Heroes Foundation, which provides an array of services to in-need veterans with disabilities.

The current bid as I type this is $15,500.

What's odd to me is that this is for those who've been traumatized by war, and the guitar glorifies war:

The guitar's design features the skull logo that Kyle's SEAL Team 3 used during tours in Iraq, and its control knobs were crafted with shells from the same kind of ammunition Kyle used in combat.

Is it me, or is this like making a charity guitar for Alcoholics Anonymous in the shape of a gin bottle?

And it's somewhat ironic that this is a Les Paul in honor of Chris Kyle -- who fought in Iraq and whose PTSD-afflicted killer also fought in Iraq -- because the real Les Paul, who was in his late eighties (and still performing) back in 2004, publicly noted that year that he opposed the president who got us into Iraq.

Remember the "Sorry Everybody" website, where people posted photos apologizing to the world for the fact that the U.S. had just given George W. Bush a second term? Les Paul was there, along with his son:



Les Paul died in 2009. I'm sure he supported the troops. But I don't imagine he thought their war was glorious.