Like many in my generation, I spent time in Vietnam. It was called, variously, the Vietnam War or a cold war military conflict. In the case of many of the men I served with it was called a damned inconvenience, as many of us had no real clue why were there. Some even called the Vietnam conflict as the “French Mistake” because of the blunders made at Dien Bien Phu that we were now trying to fix.
I was there from roughly 1967 to 1970 doing whatever the Army required of me. I asked a commanding general why were there and he explained that it had to do with a domino effect. We were trying to keep the entire region from becoming communist. I never quite understood his reasoning, since China, which was the largest country in the region, was already under the communist banner.
When I returned to civilian life I, like many others who served, had trouble adjusting. I coped by crawling inside a vodka bottle for several years. Others became reclusive and some, much, much worse.
My father’s generation was able to adjust more easily when they returned from World War II, because they had a powerful support system behind them. There was a strong belief in the value and importance of the war and, as a result, they were given jobs and opportunities that are not as available to those who are returning from Afghanistan, today.
The shooting of a park ranger, Margaret Anderson on Mount Rainier by Benjamin Barnes, (here is the news coverage by the Chicago Tribune) who was later found dead of exposure on the mountain, brings to mind that there are, perhaps, a great many more people who served in Afghanistan with the same concerns. Some are able to adjust more easily, but the memories of their experiences will haunt them in some form for the rest of their lives.
I know, mind do.
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