An Open Letter to the House Armed
Services Committee
by Phillip
Jennings – October
12, 2010
With
respect to the Viet Nam War Commemorative event(s), perhaps I'm missing
something. Is it supposed to be secret? A big surprise for
those Viet Nam Vets still alive when someone in DC gets around to planning and
announcing it? I have yet to find a Viet Vet that has any knowledge of
the commemorative possibility.
A big surprise is not a good idea. Beginning with the unfortunate statistical
data which suggests that by 2015, there might be precious few Viet Nam Vets
around to enjoy the ceremony.
Unlike the fighting men of other U.S. wars (with the possible
exception of Korea War Vets) the Viet Nam Vet has not lived bathed in glory and
praise. He has lived for the most part in a shadowland
of doubt and suspicion. It would be disingenuous to not recognize that the
mega-media and academic portrayal of the Viet Nam War as somehow immoral or
'wrong,' tainted the reputation of the Viet Nam Veterans. Even forgetting for the
moment that the media was woefully mistaken, it is the celebration of the vets
service to their country which is to be commemorated, not an opinion about the
war.
At
a minimum, I would hope that the Committee shed some light on the
Commemoration. It is to be hoped that the process is headed by a strong
supporter of the commemoration. That there is a strong and active advisory
board composed of Admirals and Generals who know how to get things done, know
about the war, and care deeply for their fellow veterans. Certainly the
commemoration should begin no later than 2013, the anniversary of sending
American advisors to Viet
Nam by President Kennedy, the first public
commitment of American troops.
I cannot suggest an appropriate budget for the events. I have heard that the events commemorating just the Normandy landings cost around $35 million.
Once a budget is established and the events are made public, I believe that the
private sector in America
will give generously, even in these tough times, to support the effort. But
that cannot happen until something happens in Washington. And it will necessitate a
strong, committed leader of the overall effort to make it all happen.
Why the secrecy? Why not a strong leader and spokesman? What is the delay in
getting started? Given some of their treatment in the past, you might forgive
the Viet Nam Veterans for being suspicious about the lack of urgency and
government commitment to the Commemoration.
I think it was Oscar Wilde who said (after a stint in an English prison):
""If this is the way Queen Victoria
treats her prisoners, then she doesn't deserve to have any."
Sometimes the Viet Nam Veterans must think--well, you know what they must
think.
Phillip Jennings served in Vietnam with
the United States
Marine Corps, flying helicopters, and in Laos as a pilot for Air America. He is
the author of the critically acclaimed comic novels "Nam-A-Rama"
and "Goodbye Mexico",
and won the Pirate's Alley Faulkner Society first prize for fiction with his
short story, "Train Wreck in a Small
Town." A successful
entrepreneur, he is currently CEO of Molecular Resonance Corporation, which is
developing technology to detect and disarm Improvised Explosive Devices. He
lives with his family near Seattle,
Washington.
Courtesy: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=39338
