Its been over 40 years since I have given war and it's consequences much thought. I don't know why it is coming back this year. I'm beginning to understand why veterans don't want to talk about war. Civilians talk about the horrors of war, the death and destruction as if they have been there. They think the 6:00pm news tells the whole story. They consider interviews with "heroes" that have come back as gospel. Neither is true. A few minuets of coverage on the news is only a few minutes of an event that lasted several years, it isn't even a summary. Interviews are filtered through a man's life, from birth through the end of the interview, every man tells a different story.
Why are soldiers interviewed in the first place? They did not start the war. In America, during the 1960s our young men upon reaching the age of 18 were conscripted into combat or sent to prison. They did not start the war. In the 1960s, we, the US were the invaders; and then, as now, it was not called a war, it was a "military action." Then, as now, the soldiers that do the invading are not the ones who started the war.
Wars and "military actions" are started by governments that either want power or want to display power. Men and women in uniform do nothing more than follow orders sent down to them by governments.
Yesterday was "memorial" day, a day set aside to honor those who did not come back from war. We at St. Peter Catholic Church had a Mass to honor and remember those who fell in battle. Our Deacon gave a very touching homily, I could tell, it meant a lot to him. But, for some reason, that particular homily left a lingering question that has been hiding in my soul for over 40 years...Who prays for the wives, children, brothers and sisters of the men that I killed?