Search for MIAs
- Share via
* Sixteen men have recently died in a helicopter crash in Vietnam, searching for the remains of U.S. servicemen missing in action over 30 years ago (April 9). I am concerned that the MIA recovery program now in effect and supported by U.S. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld may exacerbate the tragedy of the Vietnam War.
I am deeply aware, having served as a military surgeon in an Army hospital in Japan in the late 1960s, of the effects of war on the families of those maimed or killed. There is no question that a family can best accept a soldier’s death if the body is returned to his homeland. However, countless numbers of our sailors will rest forever at the bottom of the sea. Is a final resting place below a jungle canopy any less valid? Would those brave servicemen wish anyone else to die in Vietnam?
Surely, the souls of all of our servicemen killed in action are now in a godly place, no matter where their remains may be.
HENRY CLAY ALEXANDER MD
Oceanside
Sign up for The Wild
We’ll help you find the best places to hike, bike and run, as well as the perfect silent spots for meditation and yoga.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
