Book tells tale of modern snipers

One bullet, one kill.

That is the goal of military snipers from the Army, Marines and Navy Seals. The book, "Modern American Snipers" covers many of their stories.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, they had thousands of kills, while spotting enemy combatants and protecting American troops. These shots were anywhere from a couple hundred yards to 1,000 yards; the record was close to one half of a mile.

There were two more famous snipers: Sergeant Hathcock and Chris Kyle.

Sergeant Hathcock fought during the Vietnam War. He had over 90 kills, including one where he crawled inside a North Vietnamese camp and shot a leader. It took him two days to crawl in.

Chris Kyle fought in Iraq and Afghanistan; he had 160 confirmed kills and maybe up to 100 more unconfirmed.

Chris was also always helping other veterans after he got out of the service as his wife demanded he part company with the military, as too dangerous for him. One veteran he was helping had mental problems. Chris took him to a firing range; but then the person he was helping shot and killed Chris. It was a very tragic ending.

Roger Gregory is a Vietnam veteran, serving in the 1st Infantry Division. He is a business owner in Priest River.