Interesting take on that war. I think one reason it stands out is that it is (as far as I know) the only one in which returning vets weren't treated as heroes. And I think the military men and women today are benefitting from a national guilt over how our returning soldiers were treated.
My feelings (I'm older than you, obviously) went from anger when the Army Col. living across the street (my friend's father and my father's close friend) was killed after the helicopter he was riding in was shot down. At that time, we were only there as military "advisors", so he was technically a non-combatant. Anyway, righteous anger that he could be murdered by the dirty commies. As the years went by and boys I knew were drafted and sent over - some to come back, some not - and my own realizations that our government had been and still was lying to us about our involvement, my feelings changed considerably. No doubt somewhat influenced by the fact that the love of my life was draftable, my antiwar sentiments got even stronger as the 60s dragged on.
For good or ill, that war and the reaction to it, still resonates today. Which is, perhaps, as it should be. Although I believe the vast divisions we have now in our country can probably be traced back to that time when US=good, enemy=bad first became something to debate, and questioning the powers-that-be became a thing that was possible and even desirable if/when the govt seemed to be going off the tracks.
I find it really interesting that it had such a powerful effect on your life, without your actually being involved in it.
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Date: 2017-05-20 02:38 am (UTC)My feelings (I'm older than you, obviously) went from anger when the Army Col. living across the street (my friend's father and my father's close friend) was killed after the helicopter he was riding in was shot down. At that time, we were only there as military "advisors", so he was technically a non-combatant. Anyway, righteous anger that he could be murdered by the dirty commies. As the years went by and boys I knew were drafted and sent over - some to come back, some not - and my own realizations that our government had been and still was lying to us about our involvement, my feelings changed considerably. No doubt somewhat influenced by the fact that the love of my life was draftable, my antiwar sentiments got even stronger as the 60s dragged on.
For good or ill, that war and the reaction to it, still resonates today. Which is, perhaps, as it should be. Although I believe the vast divisions we have now in our country can probably be traced back to that time when US=good, enemy=bad first became something to debate, and questioning the powers-that-be became a thing that was possible and even desirable if/when the govt seemed to be going off the tracks.
I find it really interesting that it had such a powerful effect on your life, without your actually being involved in it.