I don’t have much to say about this, even though it happened in my lifetime.  It is hard to discuss, not only because it did not entire my psyche (I was only 12 when South Vietnam declared unconditional surrender), but also because the subject is so big.  What to talk about — what angle?  The fact that America lost a war?  The lessons learned?  The lessons NOT learned (that we were doomed to repeat in Iraq, like fighting a war with unclear objectives and no exit strategy)?  The MIA issue?  The first televised war?  The fall of communism?  The Vietnamese children of US soldiers?  The peace movement at home and the campus riots and killings?  The poor (and continued poor) treatment of returning soldiers?  So many things….

Vietnam was ugly and it brought out the ugly in this nation.  It was not a “good war” like the previous world wars, and never again would there be a “good war”.  “What Vietnam means” still divides this country.  I don’t think we have completely processed it yet.  I think we all just moved on.