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All in the Family I enjoyed "All in the Family" (April). It revived memories of my visit to Hanoi in 1997, coinciding with McNamara's. In the Ho Chi Minh Museum is a life-sized plasticization of the Edsel's front end with a prominent sign: "Proof that Capitalism Fails." It was one of many of Bob McNamara's eternal monuments scattered around Hanoi. There is a grassy glade contiguous to the lake in which Senator McCain supposedly parachuted. Standing there somberly are two huge statues of Lenin and Uncle Ho. I was certain General Giap (McNamara paid him a social call) would have seconded my suggestion that Hanoi honor McNamara with his own statue between Lenin and Ho; it would lend hero status and a nation's thanks to McNamara's admitted gross mismanagement of the Vietnam War. Harlan Koch '98 San Francisco Having been commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army upon graduating from Cal in 1953, I spent the next 28 years serving at various army posts in the United States and overseas in Germany, Thailand, Korea, and Vietnam. Needless to say, the fact that I served two tours in Vietnam while Mr. McNamara was Secretary of Defense generated a curiosity on my part about the direction the story would take. I had heard that McNamara has changed his position on the war, so that was not new. I was surprised to learn, however, that after 40 years his former critics expressed difficulty in forgiving him for his prosecution of the war. Conversely, I suspect that many of us who participated in the conflict believed then and now that it was a just cause. I can remember the rhetoric, accusations, and demonstrations of that era and the emotional and psychological impact they had on the armed forces, especially the professional officer corps. I certainly commend McNamara for having the desire and taking the risk to return to Cal for this dialog. It is my hope that it will give birth to other opportunities for reflection and discussion on that controversial period of American history. Emanuel Williams '53 East Point, Georgia Better late than never, when it comes to admitting mistakes. When Robert McNamara originally aired his second thoughts on Vietnam, I wrote to him to ask his support for a policy whereby members of the military under 21 would not serve in combat roles. The rationale: although 18-year-olds can vote, they are not eligible to sign contracts, imbibe alcohol, or rent cars. Can they give meaningful, informed consent to kill, or be killed, on behalf of complex, often debatable matters of state? Can a democracy be defended by people who merely follow orders? Isn't it better if policy makers earn the trust of older, better-informed troops? That seems consistent with McNamara's goal, but he never answered my letter. Now that he urges policy makers to cultivate empathy with a potential enemy, I wonder again if his thinking extends to the lower ranks--those in combat roles. Empathy with the enemy would make it harder for us to be efficient killers, while augmenting our ability to resolve conflicts nonviolently. I hope to see the day when such ideas are realized and we have a Gandhian heading the Defense Department. E. James Lieberman '55 Potomac, Maryland Late is late It was sad to read that Cal missed out on $500,000 in Fulbright-Hayes Scholarships due to a late application ("Fed-Ex Follies," April). I served as director of grants and contracts for the U.S. Department of Education in the late 1980s. I can assure you that the bureaucracy does not punish applicants for being from California. To them, "late is late." To my knowledge, they do not make exceptions if an application is late. I never did. The bureaucracy is charged with enforcing the applicable laws and regulations. If they accepted late applications, other applicants who did not get grants would probably sue. Best wishes for next year. Get the application in early. Ray Van Buskirk '74 Baytown, Texas All in The Onion Your April issue had to be lifted from The Onion, the hilarious online site. From the reference to the "Berkeley family" in the 1960s to attempting to hold the Bush administration responsible for UC's mishandling of Fulbright applications (have you folks ever heard of sending important documents a day early?), this stuff was too good. Rivaling even these absurdities was the, gasp, article about the attack on "critical thinking" at campuses ("Critical thinking under attack"). No, the article was not about the suppression at Berkeley of thought that deviates from the reflexive mantra of the left. It concerned a conference, openly held, with free discussions (which were not closed down by shouting obstructionists), with quotes from a poor-me graduate student who previously sought to exclude students from his class who are "conservative thinkers." Now tell me again, just whose critical thinking is being attacked at Berkeley? Carol F. Nowicki '70 Castro Valley The cover What a magnificent cover picture! Who is the photographer? Where can you get it? Susan Ulrich Metheny '60 Oakland Editor's reply: High-quality digital prints of the photograph--which was found at a garage sale, with no record of the photographer--can be purchased for $50, payable to the CAA, and sent to California Monthly, Alumni House, Berkeley 94720. |
 June 2004
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