Dubya captured in a few sentences what John Kerry and the anti-war left took away from the veterans of Vietnam -- the honor and larger meaning that are really the warrior's true rewards. Because nobody has profited more from being on both sides of the Vietnam war than John Kerry, it is only fitting that he is going to lose the way he is going to lose this last race of his life.
These four years have brought moments I could not foresee and will not forget. I've tried to comfort Americans who lost the most on September the 11th: people who showed me a picture or told me a story so I would know how much was taken from them.
I have learned first-hand that ordering Americans into battle is the hardest decision even when it is right.
I have returned the salute of wounded soldiers, some with a very tough road ahead, who say they were just doing their job.
I've held the children of the fallen who are told their dad or mom is a hero, but would rather just have their dad or mom. I've met with parents and wives and husbands who have received a folded flag and said a final goodbye to a soldier they loved.
I am awed that so many have used those meetings to say that I am in their prayers and to offer encouragement to me.
Where does that strength like that come from? How can people so burdened with sorrow also feel such pride?
It is because they know their loved one was last seen doing good because they know that liberty was precious to the one they lost.
And in those military families, I have seen the character of a great nation: decent and idealistic and strong.
washingtonpost.com
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Vietnam veterans, though persistently maligned in film, news reports, and classrooms as unwilling, unsuccessful soldiers, have been well thought of by average Americans. In the most comprehensive study ever done on Vietnam vets (Harris Survey, 1980, commissioned by the Veterans Administration), 73 percent of the general public and 89 percent of Vietnam veterans agreed with the statement that "The trouble in Vietnam was that our troops were asked to fight in a war which our political leaders in Washington would not let them win." Seventy percent of those who fought in Vietnam disagreed with the statement "It is shameful what my country did to the Vietnamese people." Fully 91 percent of those who served in Vietnam combat stated that they were glad they had served their country, and 74 percent said they had enjoyed their time in the military. Moreover, 71 percent of those who expressed an opinion indicated that they would go to Vietnam again, even knowing the end result and the ridicule that would be heaped on them when they returned.
jameswebb.com |
