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Dedication:

This book is dedicated to the men and women of our armed services: all who sacrificed some and many who sacrificed all. To their family and friends: many who lived each day praying their loved one would make it home, and then lived (or tried to) with the fallout as their soldier came home, trying to adjust to life after war. Many times, this adjustment is much harder and longer lasting than most people comprehend. Please take the time to read and care about the struggle and difficulty our returning soldiers experience. Nearly every day there are stories to be found in any major news source.

Political Commentary:

Vietnam Vengeance is just a novel, and maybe that’s all there is to it. This novel’s purpose is to raise awareness of the awful fallout from war; any war. What is depicted in these pages is mostly mild compared to real life, except for Chris’ vengeful actions. Some wars seem to be necessary. In my opinion, we had to participate in the two world wars, no matter the consequences to individuals. But as for other wars, I’m not so sure.

What did we accomplish in Korea or Vietnam that was worth the body count, injuries, and the trauma inflicted on our soldiers, their families and loved ones?

The fictional story shows several perspectives; perspectives of participants and non-participants. It’s the ripple effect: throw a stone into a quiet pond and the ripples continue their outward journey, affecting the calm for quite a distance. In our story, Paul became someone he would not normally be. Chris did as well, although in a different direction: taking many lives. He carried the battlefield with him, with all the destruction that ensued. Ellen could not have a normal relationship with a man due to her war trauma. Steve is permanently handicapped. And, on it goes.

Our decision-makers probably sit in their war room, estimate a body count, and then try to make a good decision. But, they do not look deep enough. Every casualty and injury has a tremendous impact on many lives for a lifetime. Think of the wives who lost their husbands, or the husbands who lost their wives, the children who grow up without a parent, the thousands of potential children never born, and the anniversaries never celebrated. Lives are ripped apart – some literally, some emotionally. Some recover from their emotional and physical wounds and move on in life. Some do not. Even now, decades later, it is hard to go two days without reading of some consequence of the Vietnam War. Almost every day something bad happens as a result of our presence in the Middle East. Just recently, the paper reported about a mother taking her own life because her son had been killed in the Middle East conflict. After four years of grieving, she could not stand it anymore and wanted to be with him. Watch the papers. The war ripples move nearly every day.

Injured soldiers live, but with the horrors of war, as do their families. It is a difficult adjustment back to civilian life, so there is a higher rate of divorce, unemployment and mental instability. This brings much stress to children, spouses, parents, siblings, and extended family.

Is what we are doing in these conflicts, and the devastating consequences, worth being foisted on even one American family? Multiply that by 58,000+ killed in action and the 153,000+ wounded in Vietnam. In Korea, more than 33,000 were killed in action and over 103,000 wounded.

Looking back, even if we accomplished something in these wars, was it worth anywhere near the terrible cost?

©2015 Keith Kluis