In Vietnam, our soldiers came back and they were reviled as baby killers, in shame and humiliation. It isn't happening now, but I will tell you, there has never been an American army as violent and murderous as our army has been in Iraq.
Interpretation
The quote reflects the shame and criticism faced by soldiers returning from conflict, highlighting the brutality of warfare, particularly in Iraq.
Seymour Hersh's quote discusses the harsh reception faced by American soldiers returning from Vietnam, labeled as 'baby killers' and subjected to public shame. He contrasts this historical event with the current state of American soldiers in Iraq, suggesting that while the public response may differ, the violence and brutality of the American military actions have reached alarming levels. Hersh's statement serves as a stark reminder of the moral complexities and societal repercussions of war.
In practice
In a discussion about the consequences of war, this quote can be cited to highlight the moral dilemmas faced by soldiers.
I joined the 'Times' in 1972, and I came with the mark of Cain on me because I was clearly against the war. But my editor, Abe Rosenthal, he hired me because he liked stories. He used to come to the Washington bureau and almost literally pat me on the head and say, 'How is my little Commie today? What do you have for me?'
To be a good reporter, writing about war, you have to write about the people. It's not about the tanks or the RPGs or military strategy. It's always about the effect war has on civilians, on society, and how it disrupts and destroys lives.
In the account book of the Great War the page recording the Russian losses has been ripped out. The figures are unknown. Five millions, or eight? We ourselves know not. All we know is that, at times, fighting the Russians, we had to remove the piles of enemy bodies from before our trenches, so as to get a clear field of fire against new waves of assault.
Twenty-first century war adds new risks: more and more often there are no front lines, no central command, no rules of engagement - only a chaotic collision of politics, power, faith and bloodlust. Victims are as likely to be civilians as soldiers.
The object of defense is preservation; and since it is easier to hold ground than to take it, defense is easier than attack. But defense has a passive purpose: preservation; and attack a positive one: conquest.... If defense is the stronger form of war, yet has a negative object, it follows that it should be used only so long as weakness compels, and be abandoned as soon as we are strong enough to pursue a positive object.
Like some infernal monster, still venomous in death, a war can go on killing people for a long time after it’s all over.
We know now that in modern warfare, fought on any considerable scale, there can be no possible economic gain for any side. Win or lose, there is nothing but waste and destruction.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.