EPIPHANY OF THE DAY

 PROBLEMS

From Westmoreland, the General Who Lost Vietnam by Lewis Sorely: In 1967, word came to General Westmoreland that those in Washington had become increasingly concerned that, despite the buildup in troops and equipment in Vietnam, the enemy was increasingly gaining the initiative. Westmoreland responded to the problem by having his staff “develop new definitions, criteria, formats, and procedures relative to the reporting of enemy activity which could be used to assess effectively significant trends in the organized enemy combat initiative.” No worry.

They had redefined the problem right out of existence.

I think that idea caught on. I see people trusting the future of their children and grandchildren to those who gloat victoriously as they apply what they think is the right solution to the wrong problem.

 Lived in San Francisco back in the day. Enjoyed life there, particularly the shows in North Beach put on by the drag queens. The Draft Board interrupted my carefree life. Wound up on a bunker at the edge of the jungle hoping I wouldn’t get shot that night. Did exercises to stay awake. One was to make a mental list of people in my life who had done me wrong and another of those who had done me “solids.”

The drag queens never made the first list, but a lot of politicians and self-proclaimed Christians did. Funny how the people on that list never went away but are still around in the same form with different faces, most of them snarling.