Vietnam, A Time of Conflict, Here and There.

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No war since the Civil War caused such a split in U.S. public opinion, as the Vietnam Conflict. It divided our nation into those for and against what seemed to be a political game. And to many it should never have involved the lives of those that so bravely served with honor, to do their duty when called upon.

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During the Vietnam War, many went to college or became conscientious objectors  to avoid going to war.  Some went to Canada to seek refuge there.

But hundreds of thousands of America's men and women chose to answer their country's call and learned of sun-scorched landscape and brain-boiling heat while packing eighty pregnant pounds.  They learned of hot house humidity, dehydration, heat exhaustion, sunburn, red dust, torrential rains, boot-sucking mud, blood-sucking leeches, steaming jungles, malaria, dysentery, razor sharp elephant grass, bush sores, jungle rot, moaning and groaning, meals in green cans, armies of insects, fire ants, poisonous centipedes, mosquitoes, flies, bush snakes, vipers, scorpions, rats, boredom, incoming fire, body bags, and a thousand more discomforts and lessons not taught on any campus.

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And after all that, when they came home,  they had to learn of the after
effects  of agent orange, PTSD and human coldness and indifference,
when Americans shunned most of those returning veterans.

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Back home, there were VWs and brightly painted buses. They traveled cross country on an adventure of free love, flower power and friends. Tie-dye and peace symbols were signs of the times.
	Over there they traveled on helicopters, armored vehicles, jeeps, ships, or a number of other military vehicles, that took them across a country full of the unknown. Olive  drab green and incoming, were the signs of the times.
Back home, they listened to The Beatles, CCR, Percy Sledge, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, The Temptations, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Beach Boys, Donovan, The Byrds, and Joan Baez just to name a few...
	Over there they listened to that, too, when they could, but mostly they just listened. For any sound that would alert them to the enemy, to radio signals and reports. Not a whole lot of dancing...
The ongoing and escalating war in Vietnam was the focus of many of the major protests during the sixties. At the time of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, United States military forces in Vietnam numbered less than 15,000. Under President Lyndon Johnson the numbers grew dramatically, and by 1966 more than 500,000 troops were deployed in the area.
	And while back home they protested against what they believed was wrong, over there, they fought for what they believed was right.
Back home, they walked miles down long roads to be with friends at Woodstock.
	Over there, they walked miles down long roads, to the unknown.
Back home, they played and danced in the mud.
	Over there, they did their best to make it back safely to base through the mud.
Back home, there were times when lives were tragically lost because a demonstration against Viet Nam war got so out of hand.
	Over there, the loss of life was a daily occurrence that was tragically unavoidable.
Back home, they had heroes and leaders to look up to.
	Over there, they had enemies they had to fight against.
Back home, they had the luxury to return to their families and homes at any given time. Over there, they had no choice but to stay until their tour of duty was up, or until God called upon them to come home.

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Let us never forget that with any war, those that serve would much rather be
"Back home" as opposed to "Over there" no matter how right or wrong the
cause is.  But for whatever reason they are or were there, they did the best job
they could and they no doubt served with honor, pride, and a love for this great country of ours.  
They deserve our respect and to know that we are proud of them.
And to each and every one, I say, God Bless you and Welcome Home!

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