58,220 Names 58,220 Stories

Recently, I had the chance to visit Washington DC. In spite of the shutdown, or showdown or whatever political theatrics were going on, I was able to visit the Viet Nam Wall. There I saw 58,220 names. 58,220 stories.

I always knew that there were about that many American lives lost in Viet Nam, but 58,000 is a number. We see lots of numbers. Everyday. At some point, they all kind of run together, don't they?

I have to admit, it's different when you see the names and realize that each one of them was a real person. A bundle of joy brought back from the maternity ward. A young graduate walking down the aisle. A person whose hopes and dreams cut short by a war. A war that to this day, too many of us can't understand or explain.

We bought the domino theory; if one falls now, they all will fall later. If we don't fight them in Saigon, we'll have to fight them in San Francisco. Eventually the dominoes did fall, but they fell the other way. After 58,220 people died. 58,200 stories ending far to soon.

I came of age a decade later. A time when Afghanistan was the next domino to fall. A time when an electrician in Poland said "no".  A new kind of domino was about to fall in Iran. I turned 18 just as Jimmy Carter brought back draft registration.

For a while, every time our leaders were tempted into venturing into an overseas conflict, I remember people saying "remember Viet Nam". Maybe that's why my generation avoided a war. 58,220 names. 58,200 reasons to be sensible.

Some folks say we lost that war. Maybe we did, but generations of people, like me, owe their lives to the fact that our politicians have been reluctant to bring back the draft. Yes, there have been other wars since then, but even then, the ghosts of Nam maintained their presence.   

On this Veterans Day, I'd like to thank all of the brave men and women who choose to wear the uniform and put it all on the line for their country.