Returning Veterans

Much has been made of the fact that veterans returning from the Vietnam War received less than a hero’s welcome. Well, I’ve got news for you. Vets returning from World War II, our “popular” war, didn’t get a hell of a lot of respect either. At least for very long. There was a ticker-tape parade and a few other celebrations, but the gratitude and admiration died down pretty fast. And I’ll tell you why: Resentment, bred of guilt, by those who remained safe at home and continued making a nice living while their brothers died in foxholes; gratitude is an emotion that does not sustain for long; people want to forget and get back to business as usual, and a secret but pervasive conviction that those who fight in wars are dumb and gullible.

Smart people find a way to get out of going to war. Rich and influential people don’t go to war. There are exceptions, but it’s true enough for the feeling to persist. Our vice president is an example, n’est-ce pas ? And our former President is another example, eh? And even now, sons of the upper echelon are distinctly missing from the armed forces.

So the boys coming home from Desert Cyclone, or whatever it’s called, are not going to get accolades and hero worship for more than a few minutes, no matter how many people are waving “Support Our Troops” signs out in the streets. They will be looked upon as the disenfranchised “suckers” they were unlucky enough to be.

BILL IDELSON

Pacific Palisades