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Stopping the Shooting Did Not Bring Peace

Schenectady Gazette
August 13 1988

“Peace is coming because the people of making the peace.” It was during the planning stages for the
May Day demonstrations against the war in Vietnam that I first saw this slogan. It seemed absurd at
first. How could the people of America do what the government refused to do? Step-by-step, I began to
realize it was the only hope for bringing American soldiers home alive.

When I came home from Vietnam, I was obsessed with the need to end the war. It was clear that we
could not win. I felt obligated to those who were still there to work for peace. At that time, however, I
thought peace was the absence of war. Many of us thought that the peace movement and ant-war
movement were one and the same. They are not. Peace is a deeper process going beyond keeping the
safety catch on our weapons. Peace is a constructive resolution of conflict that dignifies all participants.
Romantic? Yes! Visionary? Yes! Practical? Absolutely! Without that dignity violence moves to a different
arena. That is what we have with Vietnam today. Economic, social and political violence.

The United States and Vietnam are not at peace: we are just not engaged in a shooting war. Peace must
come between these two countries, with these two cultures, if peace is to come to the lives of Vietnam
veterans. We are not just veterans, we are Vietnam veterans. That means our psyches are imprinted
with the Vietnam experience. There is a relationship between attitudes toward Vietnam and toward
Vietnam veterans. As we deal with our experiences during the war, we find ourselves dealing with those
who lived, fought and died in Vietnam. We wonder about those we knew, friends and foe. We reflect on
the land we walked upon, flew over and the rivers we navigated. We remember the people and the
food. Their culture is alive within us. It is in our memories and in our dreams.

I've often heard it said that we should forget the war. “It was a nightmare! It is over. There's nothing
more that can be done.” Wrong. It isn’t that easy; nor is it healthy to pretend that something does not
exist. True health comes from integrating our experiences and moving forward. Ask the Jews who
survived the Holocaust. Ask the winners of awards. We all know someone who is stuck in the past like
the tragedy of a high school football star who dreams of “glory days”.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder comes from the numbing process that we all use to survive a shocking
experience. We block out the pain long enough to take the appropriate action which will get us to
safety. The trouble comes when we do not undergo resensitizing. The numbness needs to give way to
the feelings we blocked. Otherwise, they will seek out in inappropriate times and ways. If we continue to
behave as if we are still in a dangerous situation, we will make our life worse than if we deal with the

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pain and go beyond it. Some get scared of the pain and embarrassed. They self-medicate through
alcohol and drugs; politics and bravado. It is a denial of pain that exacerbates the problem.

The same is true for our nation. In 1975, we went into a collective amnesia about the war in Vietnam.
With Orwellian logic, we declared Vietnam to be a non-country. The war became un-history. But we all
remember the days when Vietnam was a central part of our consciousness. We were intensely engaged
with the culture, the geography, the political and military leaders. Careers were made and broken
around the war. Families were split apart. Relationships developed and/or were destroyed.

For 13 years, the United States has tried to isolate Vietnam just as some vets have tried to deny their
own painful memories. It hasn’t worked. But at long last, Vietnam is beginning to be dealt with. Peace is
coming because the people are making the peace. Americans are visiting, businessmen, veterans,
academics; even tourists are going to Vietnam. Conservatives are calling for diplomatic recognition.
Vietnamese boat people are calling for the opportunity to visit their families.

It's time for reconciliation both on a diplomatic level and on a cultural/psychological level. There are
many reasons. A significant one is that it will help the healing process of Vietnam veterans. Some of us
will go back to Vietnam. Not to meet the ghosts, but to meet that part of ourselves that was young,
alive, hopeful, despairing, afraid, lonely, confident and far from home. We will know that even we could
not destroy a culture. Losing was not the worst thing to do to us. Winning would not have been for the
best either. Then we will know that it was one of many experiences and we will focus on the adventures
to come.

Edward Murphy is a Vietnam veteran living in Saratoga Springs. Is a regular contributor to the Saturday
op-ed page.

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