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civilians were victimized. Their response, while understandable, is no more defensible than what we did in Vietnam-- or are doing in Iraq, especially to those detainees in Abu Gharaib and elsewhere.
But among the victimized, so, too were our men who were drafted into service with little recourse. It is an incredible moral dilemma and one that is easier for those of us, who were not faced with this horrendous decision, to judge. I look at the increasing suicides among our Iraqi veterans and find it a bit more complex...No, far more complex...
I don't like McCain. I don't believe him to be a hero for bombing both Viet Cong and undoubtedly, civilians--under orders, anonymously, from high above in his plane. But, having said that, I still believe it wrong to specifically villainize him. There is plenty of shared blame for the actions taken in Vietnam, but I focus on those who held the control and ability to change things...McCain, like all our troops, was a pawn in a much wider incompetence-- a much wider evil.
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