[AMRadio] Happy Memorial Day Weekend

[D. Chester]

I served from 1967 to 1970. Never went to Viet-Nam, but that was pure luck; 
came pretty close with orders in hand, but a promotion became effective just 
days before the departure date so I no longer fit the proper "slot" and the 
orders were cancelled. I disagreed with the war, but felt I had too much at 
stake to refuse service or to flee to Canada or elsewhere, so I put in my 
time. OTOH, I never felt contempt for those who fled the country and went on 
to make productive citizens of themselves elsewhere; remember our country 
was built largely by immigrants, many of whom  had fled Europe during the 
blood and chaos stretching from the Napoleanic era, the Revolutions of 1848 
in France, Germany and Italy, the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 and the start 
of WWI in 1914, for the exact same reason: to escape military service.

I recall the "strong suggestion" by our CO to wear civilian clothes while 
travelling out of the San Francisco airport, through Dallas-FW to Boston 
Logan. Those who spat on and otherwise insulted soldiers were ignorant and 
misguided. The guys they were attacking were just ordinary folks, simply 
doing what they had been directed to do, and didn't deserve mistreatment in 
any case.  I recall many on active duty who were just as opposed to the war 
as the protesters, both for political and for personal reasons, but who 
chose to go ahead and perform their duty to the best of their ability hoping 
to make it back alive to continue on with their lives. I haven't visited the 
"Wall" yet, other than viewing the virtual one on line.

I can take pride in the fact that I helped instigate the restoration of our 
local WWI "Doughboy" statue that had been long and shamefully neglected. For 
many years I had felt outrage whenever I passed by the statue seeing its 
condition, but the straw that broke the camel's back was when an old school 
classmate wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper, suggesting 
that a WW1 memorial be erected, since the town had  memorials for those who 
served in WWII, Korea and Viet-Nam. I replied with a letter to the same 
newspaper, and e-mailed copies to the town mayor and a couple of other 
officials, pointing out that there already was a WWI memorial, but it was 
hidden away in an obscure location where it was hardly ever noticed, and had 
sustained considerable damage over the years through neglect and vandalism. 
They printed my  letter, but none of the town officials personally responded 
to my e-mails.  Nevertheless, a few weeks after our letters, local officials 
"coincidentally" announced a voluntary funding effort to restore the statue 
and move it to a prominent position in the central part of town. They 
collected more than enough for the project and the statue now proudly stands 
in its rightful place.

The "Great War" was one of the most horrible ever fought, and conditions 
experienced by the soldiers in that war were probably worse than those of 
WWII.  Unlike the latter, the series of events leading up to hostilities is 
extremely complicated, and the issues fought over are still being debated, 
even to-day. Old men sitting in the comfort of their gilded palaces send 
young men and women to be slaughtered in their wars; it has always been that 
way and probably always will.

73,

Don k4kyv

_______________________________________________________________

This message was typed using the DVORAK keyboard layout.

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>----- Original Message ----- 

> From: Robert <w4rl at bellsouth.net>
> Subject: Re: [AMRadio] Happy Memorial Day Weekend
>
> Yes it still bothers me every Memorial Day from memory that when I was a
> fresh out of college and a Navy Aviation Officer Candidate in training
> as a pilot in 1969 that when I got leave and went to visit my fraternity
> brothers after seeing my parents that I was harassed while in uniform
> (orders for travel) walking across my college's campus to the frat
> house.  Yep the spitting, name calling, ........I just kept eyes forward
> but wanting to 'clean their clocks'.    I hated that war personally from
> the political standpoint, but did my thing as many thousands of others
> did scared to death.  It's taken many years to even speak about this.
>
> Yes, go to the "Wall" just once, and preferably alone, and get it out
> once and for all.  But don't allow that past to mandate you life, as
> life will and does go on.
>
> Each new dawn brings sunshine to those somewhere in this world.  And
> this is good.  Sometimes it shines on us to behold.
>
> 73
>
> Robert W4RL