Remarks of GEN, Ret. David Bramlett at the Vietnam Veterans Day ceremony, National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. GEN Bramlett spoke to the many Vietnam Veterans assembled for this commemoration, delivering powerful remarks, which are printed her with his permission. As a Vietnam War veteran, I deeply appreciate the honor to speak today, especially today when the nation has set aside today to recognize the Vietnam Veteran and to commemorate their service. We’ve grown old, we Vietnam veterans. A good friend, who brought the JROTC cadets here today reminded me in an email that, and I quote, “All of these cadets were born after 2004, Gen, Ret. Bramlett, delivering his remarks. and most of their parents were not born until after Vietnam ended.” That got me thinking – when I was their age in high school, and I was where they are, I would have been listening to a veteran of the Spanish-American War of 1898. As I said, we are growing old, and passing into history. With that reminder of our place in history, I have chosen to speak to three points. They deal with our legacy in our nation’s history. What is the legacy of those who fought in the Vietnam War and served in the Vietnam era. I don’t know what history will say, but I will share what I think. So, here it is, a soldier’s view -- Bramlett’s view -- of our legacy in three, short parts. First, we often forget the obvious – we did our Duty. By doing so, we preserved and continued the legacy – the profound tradition – established by our predecessors, just as those in uniform here with us today, represented by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, whose career is certainly an emblem of Duty served. In our day, we also answered the nation’s call, whether or not we personally wished to do so. Not everybody responded when called, and their actions -- stood then and stand now -in stark contrast to what we did. We are reminded of what Duty can demand as we remember our buddies – our long silent buddies, who rest here in the Punchbowl and our buddies who rest in cemeteries throughout our country and those who rest in places known but to God. They demand that we remember, and our nation remember, what Duty can require -- and did require -- from them. Duty required their lives. Not everyone has understood what Duty means, or requires, and certainly there was a national ambivalence, to say the least, about Duty to country during the Vietnam War. Based on what I saw when I returned from my second tour in late 1969 and in the following years, I never thought I would see the day when others would lament or regret that they avoided their Duty, or that they avoided the chance to serve their country. Now, the second part of our legacy … my view. And, I think this is unique to us, Vietnam veterans. We are a living, and will be a historical, reminder to the nation to respect always those who wear the uniform and serve the nation. Never again to confuse the warrior with the war. But it’s been that process of national realization and regret for confusing those who did their duty for the country with the decision to go to war and fight. The nation will not make that mistake again. This regret is now in our national DNA, and it won’t happen again. This is our unique legacy. On a trip to the mainland at the height of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, I stood in the Atlanta Airport and saw folks assemble along an exit corridor – as a young soldier emerged in his field uniform with his rucksack, the folks started clapping for him. I remember thinking, “Though it’s not for us, but it may be because of us.”
4
