Nerd and O'Meara........Thank you both for some excellent postings.

I was trying to make that point earlier and you have both phrased it far better than I was able to do. There were peace people who saw every vet as a "baby killer" and vets who saw every protester as someone spitting on them.

O'Meara, I understand your friends reticence as many I'm sure had no idea how to even begin to talk about it with you. As for me, in many of the groups I was in, vets against the war had a special status. Perhaps too, that was because I was never too involved in pacifism or pacifist groups either, but rather I was against THAT war...as were most vets. And as far as people talking to you, I ran into the same thing from the other end. When I was released from Petersburg, no one knew what to say to me......different reasons of course, but you do feel alone.

One other thing O'Meara.......Welcome back...Glad you made it.

Spaw