Don’t you understand what I’m tryin’ to say Can’t you feel the fears I’m feelin’ today? If the button is pushed there’s no runnin’ away, There’ll be no one to save, with the world in a grave. Take a look around ya boy, it’s bound to scare ya boy8
8Written by P.F. Sloan, 1965. Sung by Barry McGuire. Dunhill Records.
1 Souvenirs of War Rejecting Stereotypes 1 We knew that the words to this depressing song were all too true. Even as children we understood that the virtual destruction of the world as we knew it was in fact just the push of a few buttons away. We sung along; our views of the world around us and of our future already shaped by the realities of the time. No other generation in history had grown up under such a cloud of potential global doom.
At the other end of the time period is Springsteen’s Born in the USA. This was not a patriotic anthem as was mistakenly stated by President Reagan in one of his upbeat speeches in the 1980s. It was a song of despair and loss of hope by a generation of Vietnam veterans who found unemployment and misunderstanding upon their return, not fulfillment and promise of a better life.
Come back home to the refinery Hiring man says “Son, if it was up to me”. I go down to see the VA man, He said, “Son, Don’t you understand”.
Down in the shadow of the penitentiary, Out by the gas fires of the refinery. I’m ten years down the road, Nowhere to run, ain’t got nowhere to go.9
9
9By Bruce Springsteen, 1984. ©Sony. No, there was no Bing Crosby or Perry Como for this generation of returning vets. No White Christmas movies depicting proud and honorable conquering heroes. The post-Vietnam era for the most part saw movies that seemed to mock veterans for the entertainment and economic value that could be had by portraying us as dysfunctional, alienated, and addicted. Or worse. I sadly recall my secretary relaying a story to me about her daughter’s comments upon seeing the movie Platoon — a movie that the producers claimed to be ‘the real thing’. Her daughter, a high school senior at the time, proclaimed that Vietnam veterans were every bit as evil as the Nazis in World War II — all we did was rape, plunder and murder. How sad that directors and producers let the desire for profit outweigh truth, and as a result led an entire generation to believe that Vietnam veterans were little more than crazed and drugged rapists and killers. Far too few young Americans recognize the lies Hollywood has perpetuated about the war and the men who fought in it as the outrageous falsehoods that they are.
Perhaps one of the more difficult realities awaiting returning vets was the lack of closure. It is just barely an exaggeration to say that one day a soldier was at war and the next he was home trying to put his life back together. This re-acclimation process is hard enough even when society is supportive of the military and their returning soldiers. When society had largely deserted the soldier it was infinitely more difficult. Vietnam vets weren’t looking for pity or a handout — they wanted nothing more than what their fathers received when they came home from war — a
1 Souvenirs of War Rejecting Stereotypes 15
thank you from their country and recognition for the job they did and sacrifices they made. The fact remains, however, that the vast majority of returning Vietnam veterans resumed a normal life and acclimated well. They became doctors and mechanics, lawyers and electricians. They built America’s cars and kept the mean streets of our cities safe. As teachers they taught our young — perhaps from a perspective of maturity and understanding of human nature lacked by some. As parents they were able to understand the fragility and uncertainty of life, while at the same time appreciating the wonderfulness of life, and thus love their families deeply.
Vietnam veterans learned the lessons of social and political responsibilities. They took the test and passed. They gained an appreciation and love of the American way by seeing the other side. We saw how valiantly and desperately people were willing to fight to save their country and way of life — imperfect as they may have been. We were humbled by those who had little but were willing to risk it all. It gave us a renewed appreciation for our many blessings.
These veterans put into practice words of the Constitution by willingly fighting to protect the rights of those who strongly, sometimes violently, disagreed with them. With their actions these veterans loudly proclaimed that even if I don’t agree with what you have to say, I will fight to defend your right to say it. Yes, these men and women have been a major part of American society and contributed greatly to the economic, moral, and social fabric of our country. I believe that the hard-won qualities and strength of character that these Americans carry with them has helped our country in ways that are impossible to measure. Most of all, I’m proud to be a part of this group of veterans, people that stood tall when called upon to serve, and of a generation forged in the flames of war and controversy.
Many, perhaps most, servicemen thought that Vietnam was a noble cause. We were helping people who were unable by themselves to save their country and way of life from an invasion by communist North Vietnam, which was largely a proxy nation for the Soviet Union and China in the struggle to spread communism. We were fighting to keep millions of people free from subjugation. There were millions of people in South Vietnam — a sovereign nation — that desperately did not want to be under the harsh laws and doctrines of the North. Millions of people simply wanted to live according to their customs and be able to practice their religious beliefs without persecution by atheistic dictators from Hanoi, Moscow and Beijing. But was that reason enough for us to intervene and for tens of thousands to die? To this day I do not know. I’m afraid I lack the wisdom to answer that awesomely difficult question. If North Vietnam had honored the Paris Peace Treaty and not invaded the South while the ink was still wet on the paper there could have been peace. Had that been the case, and had the people of South Vietnam been able to live their lives in peace while remaking their own country, the sacrifices and deaths perhaps would have been worthwhile. The freedom of millions of people is a goal worth fighting for. But the North, with the backing of the Russian and Chinese behemoths, had no intention of letting the population of the South live in peace. Mr. Kissinger must have struggled mightily as he put pen to paper to rationalize in his own mind that he was condemning the South to conquest by the North, and at the same time he was negating the blood, sweat and tears of hundreds of thousands of young American men and their families.
What I do know is that Vietnam vets never forsook their country — their country turned its back on them. Never again can we allow this to happen.
I also know that General William Tecumseh Sherman’s declaration that war is all hell wasn’t an exaggeration; it was an understatement.
Year of Death Number of or Declaration of Death Records
1956-1960 9
1961 16
1962 52
1963 118
1964 206
1965 1,863
1966 6,143
1967 11,153
1968 16,592
1969 11,616
1970 6,081
1971 2,357
1972 641
1973 168
Total 58,193
State Home of Record Number of Records
Alabama 1,207
Alaska 57
Arizona 623
Arkansas 588
California 5,573
Canal Zone 2
Colorado 620
Connecticut 611
Delaware 122
District of Columbia 242
Florida 1,952
Georgia 1,582
Guam 70
Hawaii 276
Idaho 217 Illinois 2,934
Indiana 1,532
Iowa 853
Kansas 627
Kentucky 1,055
Louisiana 882
Maine 343
Maryland 1,014
Massachusetts 1,323
Michigan 2,654
Minnesota 1,072
Mississippi 637
Missouri 1,413
&nb
sp; Montana 268
Nebraska 395 Nevada 151
New Hampshire 227
New Jersey 1,484
New Mexico 399
New York 4,121
North Carolina 1,609
North Dakota 198
Ohio 3,096
Oklahoma 988
Oregon 709
Pennsylvania 3,144
Puerto Rico 345
Rhode Island 207
South Carolina 896
South Dakota 193 Tennessee 1,291
Texas 3,415
Utah 366
Vermont 100
Virgin Islands 15
Virginia 1,304
Washington 1,050
West Virginia 732
Wisconsin 1,161
Wyoming 120
Other (non-U.S. 121 home of record)
Total 58,193
Military Service Branch
Air Force
Army Coast Guard
Number of Records
7 Marine Corps Navy
Total Military Lost
58,193
Souvenirs of War Page 12
