I am a Viet Nam era veteran. In retrospect, I was quite blessed not to go to Viet Nam and my views on that conflict are generally more directed at the now emerging development of that country in world market places. It seems the result for Viet Nam was nothing as predicted by those government leaders during that time. And yes, I do pray to God for peace in the hearts and minds of veterans on both sides who bear the scars today in body and mind. I lost several close friends in that war and saw one return with more medals than any one man could carry, but deeply scarred physically. This holder of several grape clusters died in a house fire, after many years of looking and finally finding peace at home. Irony is not the word for that. Certainly, I do not see Viet Nam or the current conflict of the United States and its few allies in Iraq being part of any sort of reenactment. A reenactment almost requires battle on a grand scale and a fight which did produce an accepted truth in the finale. The Revolutionary War in finding freedom from British rule is one example of accepted truth. Today, the Brits are a staunch ally of the USA. The Civil War was often brother against brother and was much more than a racial conflict. The racial reasons are often quoted but seeing the easier acceptance of racial mixing in the southern states than in many of the north makes me wonder. These wars were real in this country and overall the results were good and beneficial. Still, that does not make the horror of war any less horror or death any less than dying. Large forces of politics, moods and conviction of the people by such often lead to war. The people are often caught up in a tornado they cannot escape but to finish the war. Nations defending their own land have a different view, as would the Russians during the Second World War. The difference in the USA and the Russians at that time is the USA did as usual, withdrawing and returning the original remaining countries to their own rule. Japan has done wonders with this rebuilding so that made in Japan no longer relates to cheap articles but is taken now as the highest technology available. Russia kept those countries it went through until the Union was dissolved fairly recently into several independent states. I do not see wars of great importance but of strange quality being part of reenactments. This includes Viet Nam and the fighting in the Middle East. Too many ideas are involved to make a clear distinction of sides in some cases. Too many people are caught in that tornado of politics. And, the grand scale to the world or the individual countries is missing. The grand scale of troopers laid out in row after row is missing and sappers are difficult to reenact. Some of these wars simply cannot be reenacted and would best be left that way. These fights are too, too very close to the heart and memory now. A footnote, Custer was a Civil War general who went west in the United States. He will killed at a fight at the Little Bighorn. When that reenactment takes place, the Indians win. Indians is not a proper or fitting name for our Native Americans. Let us simply say, the Natives won one while eventually loosing to a government that was not very fair to them along the way or thereafter. Some of this was done with excuses history shows a part of many conflicts: Religon. In this case, Christianize or die. That is not Christianity, for any who might read this. Christianity is not an imposed religion but one of self will in developing faith. The excuse was religion. I see much of the same excuse in the Middle East though extreme interpretation of Muslim belief. Much of Islam does not agree with such interpretation. My friends include many faiths, though I do wish them to be as I am. Still, they do have free will and imposition of religion is a heritical reason for war. Any heart not given freely is not give at all but is imprisoned, IMO. So, imprisoned are those of a country in war of its own doing in fighting that war. Defense is a different situation altogether. God Bless. TomDart.