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Freddie deBoer's avatar

I can already hear the keyboards chattering, but please, save it. These guys attacked a population with many profoundly vulnerable people inside of it. They did so with maximum callousness and maximum cynicism, stoking exactly the kind of fires that are most professionally useful in our current era. And I got heated. You think this goes too far, it isn't what you paid for, fine. You want to cancel your subscription, go ahead. I am in earnest and I do not apologize.

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Kathleen McCook's avatar

I am a widow of a VN Veteran who died of wounds. He was drafted because he was working class, a carpenter from rural American, not in college. It is Memorial Day and I can't write everything I am feeling just now. Only 30% of the men who served in VN are still alive.

Academic men who taught Darda had student deferments during the VN era so anyone who was in college during the VN era did not go. I have found that the group of men--the wealthy, the college educated-- who avoided the draft found ways to justify. Controlling the narrative as they would, they taught people like Darda. (Darda isn't a minor academic- he has books by major university presses). Also they likely knew ppl on draft boards who controlled who was drafted. The National Guard was an out for those who knew someone like GWBush.

My husband did not want to go to VN. He joined Veterans for Peace when he returned after Tet. A professor at a rally asked him, "was he too stupid to get a college deferment?" It is so much more complicated than Darda knows because he was educated by teachers who had to self justify. (probably alive in much higher numbers than the men drafted). Senator Blumenthal from CT where Darda was educated campaigned as a VN Veteran but was not.

And you are 100% right about _The New Republic_ . Leon Wieseltier was many years their muse. I unsubbed years ago. Thanks for reminding me why I did.

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