I was not alive to remember the Vietnam War-- but found myself in the same condition you described yourself in as I watched the soldiers return late Saturday night.

I'm now working as a local news producer in Orlando (ex-POW Williams calls it home so we've been following his return with his father) the weekend morning news is my show.

My reporter, who was in Ft. Hood for the arrival-- his job is to put emotions into words-- had a hard time describing the scene.

To use your words--we were both "blubbering masses of weeping twenty-somethings."

Thought I'd share-

D. Mica

Around 1982 an American journalist was in a Ho Chi Mihn city bar, when a slight, older Vietnamese gentleman approached him. In fairly good English, he asked the American if he were a journalist. The man replied that he was.

The Vietnamese gentleman exclaimed "Thank God, at last." He'd been looking for an American journalist for years. When asked why, the man replied, "I was a North Vietnamese officer. I want you to tell something to all the Americans we fought. I understand that they were scorned when they got home. We (the ex-Viet Cong) can't believe that! We'd fought the French, the British and the Australians. We always knew we'd win -- it's our country -- but no army we ever faced was tougher or more intimidating than the Americans. We never respected any soldiers more than them, and if it were possible we were going to lose, it would have been to them. Please let them know that."

With gratitude

K. Galayda

It was a great day to get those kids back. But we must not forget the 100's that lost their lives, the many hundreds of wounded and the great heroes that walked thru without a physical scratch.

I know you have not, but as I watched those young men and one woman come home I did start to bawl, but it was for those that are not yet home and the ones that will never be.

G. Graves

Growing up in a military family during the Viet Nam war may have made me more susceptible to an emotional response to the flag, our anthem and fly-overs, etc (my kids can't understand the pride I feel at the symbols of American and why it bring tears to my eyes).

We were in Hawaii when many of the POW came home and I was frequently on the flight line with others cheering their return. It is a national tragedy the we did not treat others returning from Viet Nam with the same cheers.

R. Haber

The absolute highest point in my Vietnam tour was when I had the opportunity to make my comments to the assembled throng that gathered to see me be awarded the Bronze Star.

I stood proudly and told them it was an honor to accept this award on behalf of -- and at that point I took out a list of the names of every soldier assigned to me and read off the Name, rank, and job of each one of them -- they won that award, not me.

H. Powers

I'm a Vietnam vet who didn't have to come home in uniform but I remember the stigma well. I am pleased to read everything you send me but this one today hit home with me, was one of your best, and has generated feedback to me, all positive, already.

Bob S. (Laura's Dad - Newt's office)

After active duty I stayed in the reserves for 6 years until it finally became no longer fun. The camaraderie of those days [in Vietnam] with guys I risked my life with are a part of who I am and I suspect that most vets of my generation feel much the same way about their service. For those of my generation, it is great to see the level of attention and patriotism focused on those who serve now.

This healing process began with the Gulf War and has continued to this date. It is also perceptive of you to understand that people who opposed the Vietnam War judge all new conflicts through the filter of their experience in the 60's and 70's. They were so wrong about this war as well as about the one in Afghanistan that they look painfully ignorant.

D. Martin

I also served in the military (USN aboard the aircraft carriers USS Oriskany and USS Ranger) during the Viet Nam war.

In late 1991 or early 1992 I was on a business trip to a small city in Montana. Aboard the 35 passenger commercial flight was a returning Gulf War soldier, a young lady of perhaps 23 or 24. When the plane landed she was greeted by television cameras, signs, and perhaps 100 people. In a small airport is seemed more like 1,000.

I glanced over my shoulder at the gala reception and proceeded to the car rental counter. As I stood there I began to fight back the tears. To the grandmotherly lady on the other side of the counter I said, "I never got a reception when I came home." She was tender and asked if I wanted to talk about it.

I told her a little about my years in the Tonkin Gulf and soon learned that her son would also soon be returning from the Gulf. I told her to value her son's service. "Let him know that his service was not insignificant and remind him that freedom is never free."

That day, with the help of a nameless rental car clerk, I was able to reconcile emotions pent up for two decades.

Thanks for sharing your recent encounter with another Viet Nam vet. I, with him, feel confident that our future is secure as I see our returning troops, and a grateful nation welcoming them home.

T Lane

Rich, I watched those guys on the tube as well Saturday night, and the tears rolled.

I remembered a close friend of mine from Texas A&M, Captain Joe Bush, who was KIA in Laos when the USG said we didn't have anyone in Laos.

I was a PAO at the Pentagon and was jolted when I read the casualty report. The brass wouldn't even let the Army put the locale of his death on his tombstone. He's buried in Temple, just down the road from Fort Hood. Joe never got the due he deserved from his country, like tens of thousands of others. You said it for a lot of us. Thanks.

T. DeFrank

Please thank your friend Kenn for serving our country. I appreciate him very much. God bless.

S. Jones

Look, if you are going to reduce people to clich�s and cultural stereotypes, go for the gold: Call them granola crunching, strike orientate, pasty faced, sniveling, psudo-intellectual followers of the failed collectivist philosophy of the losers of history.

C. Shirley

Tell Kenn that I know exactly how he felt. I, too, flew helicopters in Vietnam. As a matter of fact, I wear on my right shoulder the same patch that CWO's Young and Williams wear, signifying combat with the First Cavalry Division (Airmobile). I, too, have felt the tears that came unbidden at many sights over the last few weeks. I suspect that he and I are far from alone.

P. Glass

Yes, we cried too. Also during the Bob Hope tribute war bits. Also, remembering my dad returning and my mom being spit on [while] waiting for him. Changing indeed, yet those of us living with the long-haired freaky people drek will not forget. Ever.

JWW

I was at a hockey game last Thursday night, and during a TV time-out, the scoreboard showed some brief clips of soldiers for about 30 seconds, and the crowd's began to applaud.

Then the message flashed up, "The Washington Capitals salute America's soldiers," (or something close to that) and then the in-house camera focused on one of the fancy boxes. One young man was in a wheelchair, the rest were standing, and it was obvious they were either recently returned servicemen or veterans. Then the crowd stood up, cheered and applauded. The linesman who was about to drop the puck stepped back, and started applauding.

The smile on the face of the young man in the wheelchair could have lit the building. It took me a second to catch myself before I could explain to my 11-year-old why everyone was standing up and applauding.

Times, they have a-changed, Rich.

G. Karr

Our interim Rector spoke yesterday that it's time to "roll back the stone" and enter a world of love and promise - leave the dark and troubled behind - and he wasn't strumming a guitar, but speaking the word of the Lord. Thank you GWB.

We're going to a do a Vietnam survivor tribute at my 35th high school reunion in Crystal Lake, IL this June. I bet we're not alone.

N. Dwight

I know that many VN vets share those thoughts. Because Vietnam has been reported again and again and again (per that line we heard on Tony Snow yesterday); the weight never lifted.

Be well, be good, and do good;

B. Bathurst

On a sunny spring day in 1991, I saw Mr. Businessman get out of his

car. It was a 1967 Mustang - the car of his youth. It had a bumper sticker which read, "Da Nang Class of '73." I said, "Sir, I noticed the bumper sticker." His shoulders slumped, a worried, worn look came over his face as he wondered what would happen next. I said only two more words as I extended my hand, "Welcome home."

He never shook my hand. Instead, Mr. Businessman's whole body shook as he hugged me and sobbed on my left shoulder for several minutes. He was too emotional to speak conventionally.

His tears spoke volumes. He finally regained his composure and went about his day as Mr. Businessman. I wonder how many others still need to hear, "Welcome home."? I wonder how often all most of us really need is just a little appreciation?

We've received notices via OSI, ONI, and CID that "civilian clothes are suggested outside of Bases and Posts" near San Diego and San Antonio.

What makes this a little personal to me is tomorrow's trip, a TDY to San Antonio.

I'm taking my Wart Hog T-shirt with me. The A-10 has just fired a Maverick and the caption reads "You can Run; but you'll just die tired."

Credit that line to Rush Limbaugh who coined it back in Sacramento, before 1988.

J. Borden

I wanted to tell you a little story involving my daughter and her "Marine" that occured today:

The Marine in question had flown to CA from DC on Thursday to watch our daughter (his girlfriend) play a collegiate tennis match and to meet us for the first time. Right after Easter brunch we hustled him off to catch a plane back to DC.

I dropped both of them off at the terminal and went to park and wait for my daughter to phone me to come pick her up. On entering the terminal they discovered that she could proceed no further so the goodbyes were abrupt.

As she sat tearfully watching him go, one of the security guards asked her about him, and she told him that this was "her" Marine, returning to duty. This security guard got up and said she could get an escort pass for special circumstances and proceeded to do just that and escort her through security and to his gate where they got to spend another 45 minutes together.

I thought this was another example of the respect that our service people are receiving this time around -- today's example of someone going out of his way to do a kindness for a serviceman and his girl really touched this mom!

LSM

I thought back to the time in May of 1971 when I came home from Vietnam. If someone told me to wear civilian clothes I don't recall it. Instead, I put my beret, yes it was green, on and walked proudly through SFO only to receive the spittle of some ignorant bastard. I wanted to jump the rail and kick his butt back to Berkley where he belonged or to hell, which ever came first. Thankfully, I marched on realizing that had I done so, I'd have been labeled the villain.

Now I can write this, as my wife of almost 32 years says "Thanks for your service to our country" to every veteran she meets. It is all I need to realize what we did was not in vain!

Thank God, these guys made it home and I pray that all of them will make it back. Hopefully soon and hopefully to a country that is thankful for all they've done.

T Nihoul

I'm one of the lucky ones...a Vietnam "era" Navy veteran who went just where Uncle Sam said to go, and spent four years in San Diego, including twenty months on sea duty without ever setting foot on a ship. In a way, I feel a bit of "survivor's guilt" at never having been sent overseas, while many of my friends from home went, and a few didn't come back.

Even though I didn't "see the elephant", I was in the parade, and had to deal with some of the same issues that those who went to Vietnam did...not being able to travel in uniform, putting up with the scorn of those to whom everyone in the service was a baby-killer, and so on.

I'm doubly lucky. I have a son who felt that he needed to do something for his country as well as for himself, and had already started the process of joining the Marines well before 9/11. He's presently at Camp Pendleton.

Today's attitudes do inspire hope for our country, the Follywood crown being in a very small minority, and generally disregarded as the fools they are showing themselves to be. They were oh, so quick to jump on the patriotism bandwagon in September of 2001, and so very quick to jump off when it came time to continue with the job of finding and punishing the evildoers and prevent them from coming out from the woodwork again. It's a lesson learned by Israel decades ago, and still not being uniformly learned in our country today.

D. Kaiser

If you are a Korean vet, like me, you remember the yard signs in St. Louis that said "Dogs and Soldiers, Keep Off the Grass."

G. Durnil

Dang. That's the first piece of writing in a long time that's actually made me get up and go rummage in various closets to make sure I can still find that blue box with the gold-leaf "BRONZE STAR MEDAL" inscription on the front.

M. Rathbun