Nick Turse: The Moral Injury of War
Some men are very nearly monsters, capable of killing without compunction or remorse. In the everyday civilian world, we generally seek to lock them up. In war, they have a chance to fully flower.
John Samuel Tieman: Thank you for your service
At the gym the other day, a few of us old veterans were talking among ourselves. The subject drifted to how tired we are of that “Thank you for your … Continue reading
Andrew J. Bacevich: Reflections on “Peace” in Afghanistan
However great my distaste for President Trump, I support his administration’s efforts to extricate the United States from Afghanistan….Prolonging this folly any longer does not serve U.S. interests. Rule number one of statecraft ought to be: when you’re doing something really stupid, stop.
Philip Terman: Such Abundance
When he called for help,
they put him on hold
longer than he could stand
and he broke
the phone in half.
Audio: Martin Luther King — Beyond Vietnam: A Time To Break Silence
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. – April 4, 1967 – Beyond Vietnam: A Time To Break Silence [Full and unabridged] “Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence“, also referred as Riverside … Continue reading
Erich Maria Remarque: All Quiet on the Western Front (Chapter 12)
It is autumn. There are not many of the old hands left. I am the last of the seven fellows from our class. Everyone talks of peace and armistice. All … Continue reading
Video: Viet Thanh Nguyen
. As part of the Lannan Foundation Readings and Conversation series, Viet Thanh Nguyen is introduced by Maxine Hong Kingston, then reads from his work. Recorded March, 2017. . Viet … Continue reading
John Samuel Tieman: Walking Drag
Here’s a little war story I never told anyone.
Michaela Haas: 7 Strategies to Turn Trauma Into Strength
Survivors discover surprising benefits in the process of healing from a traumatic event. When Army surgeon Rhonda Cornum regained consciousness after her helicopter crashed, she looked up to see five … Continue reading
Elizabeth Sherman: John McCain, dead at 81, helped build a country that no longer reflects his values
Arizona Sen. John McCain – scion of Navy brass, flyboy turned Vietnam war hero and tireless defender of American global leadership – has died after a year of treatment for … Continue reading
John Samuel Tieman: My Lai
March 16, 1968. Fifty years ago, U. S. soldiers killed as many as 504 unarmed Vietnamese civilians. Perhaps the worst war crime in American history. Two years after that, I … Continue reading
W. D. Ehrhart: Beautiful Wreckage
In Vietnamese, Con Thien means
place of angels. What if it really was
instead of the place of rotting sandbags,
incoming heavy artillery, rats and mud.
Doug Anderson: Operation Badger Tooth
Once a year, on December 25, a darkness comes up from the earth into my life. On December 24th, nineteen sixty-seven, a battalion landing team comprised of three infantry companies … Continue reading
John Samuel Tieman: My War as a Clarinetist
“One time, the band played a welcoming ceremony for these grunts – and I mean they walked right out of the bush and into “Stars and Stripes Forever.” John Samuel … Continue reading
Vox Populi 