Watershed Events

Source

In my lifetime I've seen three watershed events for the United States -

• The assassination of President John F. Kennedy
• Vietnam
• The 9/11 Attacks

In November of 1963 I was ten years old, attending Union Street Elementary School in the 4th grade. At some point in the day, I don't remember exactly when but it was before the normal end of the school day, we were all sent home. I do remember the teachers all looking very solemn and very concerned when they sent us home for the day.

Oddly enough, I remember quite a bit about 1st and 2nd grades, much more about 3rd, and a lot about 5th and 6th grades.

Of the 4th grade I remember the assassination and the events surrounding it, and virtually nothing else.

1963 is when I learned about death.

Vietnam filled the rest of my school days, from the Tonkin Gulf in August of 1964 to my first year in college, 1971-1972. It followed me until I enlisted in the Air Force in early 1975.

My Dad's generation experienced World War II, two of my uncles and one of my great-uncles experienced it directly, two as combat infantrymen in Europe, one as an Air Force mechanic on Okinawa. Both infantrymen were wounded, both survived. One of my cousins served in the Air Force in Vietnam.

In high school the big magazines of the time, Life and Look had articles on the war every week. One week, in June of 1969, Life published an article The Faces of the American Dead in Vietnam: One Week’s Toll. (You can see that here.) They published pictures of the 242 young men who lost their lives in Vietnam in that one week. I was 16 when I saw that article

1969 is when I learned about fear.

Life rolled along without any major disruptions for the country and for me personally until the 18th of August 1976. I was stationed with the 18th Tactical Fighter Wing at Kadena AB on Okinawa. I was an Airman (one stripe, I put on my second stripe, Airman 1st Class, in September of that year).

The recall sirens went off, we got into uniform and headed to the shop. Everyone wondering "WTF?" - usually we had advanced warning of exercises, perhaps this was no exercise.

It was not.

Two U.S. Army officers had been murdered in the DMZ which separates North and South Korea. (You can read about that here.) The United States was going in and going in strong, the 18th would be sending a squadron of F-4D Phantoms (loaded for bear) to Korea, followed by another as fast as we could generate the aircraft.

We were gathered in the shop with one of our more respected NCOs briefing us on all this. As he said, "We might be going to war in the next few days." One of our junior NCOs actually cheered. Everyone turned to look at the guy with a "what is wrong with you?" look on their faces.

1976 is when I learned about idiocy.

While that wasn't really a watershed event for the U.S., it was for me. (Missed one war, looked like I might have my own to deal with. Turned out not to be the case.)

Life rolled on, got married, had kids, retired from the Air Force and started my second career.

It was 2001, our oldest child, our son, was commissioned in the Navy in May of that year. In late August our middle child, our oldest daughter, began Navy ROTC.

It was Tuesday, a beautiful fall day in New England, it was the 11th of September.

What started as a beautiful day turned to one of horror.

2001 is when I learned about hatred.

I mean hatred on a very real and personal, very visceral level. I wanted (and still want) all of those responsible for this atrocity dead in the most painful, most lingering of ways. I want them to suffer agony most profound.

I want them to know the agony of a loved one going off to work, and never coming home.

I want them to know the agony of a child going off to war, perhaps never to return.

I want them to know the agony of having lost a loved one, in the prime of their lives, and mourning that someone, decades later.

We went to war that day in 2001, we are still at war.

When will it end?

Certainly never if the current crop of politicians are allowed to continue in their jobs.

I will remember that day, this date, until I close my eyes for the last time.

God help me, I will never forgive those responsible.