re: Families of US troops in shock as they deploy to Gaza coast to build emergency pier

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I don't think those two were related.

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Yes, they were.

Reagan needed imagery on TV of Marines hitting the beaches to replace the images of Marines returning home in flag draped coffins. Think about it, the press was already on the beach to get the video as the Marines were landing. It was obviously staged.

Reagan was all about imagery and appearances. I remember reading a paper on Reagan's use of imagery during his presidency, it was fascinating. One common approach was to have the images presented to be in direct opposition to the message in the voice over. Polls showed that people remembered the images, but forgot the narrative. One famous example was when he proposed to cut spending for Medicare, but the commercial talking about it showed an elderly care hospital ribbon cutting ceremony. People remembered the image of a hospital opening, but didn't remember the narrative about the cuts.

It's all about the imagery, and Reagan knew it.