Pat Tillman's life was never conventional. That unconventional nature led him to become an NFL star and then to be so moved by the events of 9/11 that he gave up his multi-million dollar NFL career to join the Army and go to Iraq and Afghanistan. At some point, as his diary's reveal, he began to detest the war in Iraq and question even the conduct of the war in Afghanistan. And then, on April 22, 2004, he was killed by "friendly fire."
Without question the Army, under the direction of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, tried to cover it up and attempted to make Tillman's death something that it was not. What happened next gave rise to the real Pat Tillman story and to the investigative work of best selling author Jon Krakauer. His book Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman is just out in paperback.
My conversation with Jon Krakauer: