I am disgusted by the current petty and outright political fighting. Having lived through the turbulent ’60s and ’70s I had hoped that the terrible discord surrounding the Vietnam War would benefit from the softening of time. It was a senseless war with no winning strategy.
Those who served have a right to be proud of their service. They fulfilled and, in many cases, exceeded our government’s calling. Each carries imprints from the horrors of war. Those who served and saw not only the horrors but the injustice had the right and obligation to speak out against them. I protested the war while in Washington with many Vietnam veterans. It was a time of high emotion and violent rhetoric.
It seems that some of the swift boat veterans hold a grudge against John Kerry’s testimony in front of Congress during the war. Funding from pro-President Bush parties enables them to live out that grudge. And Bob Dole ought to know better. If anyone needs to apologize, it is the people who involved us in the war. Most of them are gone now.
It is time to put the venom of Vietnam behind us. The time to accuse Kerry of anything regarding his Vietnam protest or service came and went 30 years ago.
The same is true of George Bush’s National Guard record.
Let’s focus on the real issues.
