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Respect and thanks to our Vietnam Vets - today. 19-Aug-2016 At 11:59:48 AM Ithomas

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Maybe some respect should be shown to combatants from both sides. The Vietnamese were defending their land from an invasion. They were the victims. It is their country and maybe they should call the shots. I feel for the Australians who were involved but I know that many feel uncomfortable about how this deadly skirmish is portrayed as a victory. I know this because even though I did not go to Vietnam I was called up for National Service and served in the Artillery Corps from 1972 while the war was still raging. I have lived with people who were there and have listened to their stories and dealt with their sorrows. Both sides lost many men and it should come as no surprise that there are many different opinions. Does it not seem reasonable that the Vietnamese, with nearly 250 dead, might feel a little sensitive about the location being monopolised by a former enemy? Maybe they do not want it to turn into the circus and rubbish dump into which the Gallipoli commemoration has turned - and yes, I have been there. As it turns out, the prospect of a substantially curtailed ceremony was raised some time ago by the Vietnamese authorities but no-one seemed to take any notice. The Vietnamese government eventually allowed (after one minute to midnight talks with Turnbull) a restrained dedication which to my mind seemes perfectly acceptable. The comments about trad climbing and returning vets is puerile and adds nothing to the post at all.
Ian