It has everything to do with men and women, civilian and military, being killed, maimed, or left mentally ill because war became the only way to resolve human differences. When suddenly the war was over, we were treated like heroes, but there are no heroes in combat, only those who do their terrible duty under difficult conditions. Do not make heroes of us. Allow those of us who served at the front to live out the lives we never expected to walk away with, quietly, with our lonely memories and our private, contradictory, and unresolved emotions of pride and shame. The following is an excerpt from a longer Reflection.
Denial permeates American society like salt in sea water.
Individuals learn denial from the ambiguity and equivocation of institutions, which patronize the culture. Deeply implicated in war and nuclear saber-rattling, we deny that, rejecting any responsibility. Finally when pushed to it we deny our denial. Nonviolent communities of resistance must be sought and built. Be ready for sacrifice.