Mario P -- Blogmeister

The Vietnam war was one of the most crucial wars that America was highly involved in. Starting in 1959, Vietnam is considered the only war that the US has lost. After France escaped from any involvement of Vietnam, the war was a struggle between the nationalist forces attempts to try and unify the country of Vietnam under a communist government. The US attempted to prevent the spread of communism. But, victory of the war seemed out of reach. Eventually, the government lost all support from the public and pulled out of Vietnam in April 30, 1975. People refer to The Vietnam war as, “what not to do for future foreign conflicts”(Rosenburg, Vietnam War).
The recruitment of the army during the Vietnam War was a catastrophe. Draft evasion sky rocketed and crippled the selective service act. This brought the war to home in a very personal manner. Soldiers began fleeing to Canada through underground rail roads and tunnels with antiwar supporters. School campuses all over America became antiwar protest sights. Students rebelled by burning their selective service draft cards. Of 200,000 protesters, only 6,000 people were actually convicted with failure to abide by the Selective Service Act(Kindig, Vietnam War; Draft Resistance).
After the war was said and done, the effects of post war were mind blowing. Americans had to deal with the feeling of humility to do losing the war. Citizens had a
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weakened trust in their governments because of poor political decisions. And the most important of all post war dramas was that nothing was done for those who served in Vietnam. It was extremely difficult to get a job and stay out of prison for soldiers. Those who suffered from shell shock and post dramatic stress disorder were not treated. Many soldiers would never live the same again. Over time, many people asked, “was it all really worth it”(Sitikov, The Post War Impact of Vietnam)?

Sitikov, Harvard. "The Postwar Impact of Vietnam." Welcome to English « Department of English, College of LAS, University of Illinois. Modern American Poetry, 19 Oct. 1999. Web. 17 Apr. 2012. <http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/vietnam/postwar.htm>.
Rosenburg, Jennifer. "Vietnam War." About.com 20th Century History. About.com, 11 June 2000. Web. 17 Apr. 2012. <http://history1900s.about.com/od/vietnamwar/a/vietnamwar.htm>.
Kindig, Jessie. "Vietnam War: Draft Resistance." Vietnam: Draft Resistance. Antiwar and Radical History, 4 Dec. 2001. Web. 17 Apr. 2012. <http://depts.washington.edu/antiwar/vietnam_draft.shtml>.
www.english.illinois.edu/maps/vietnam/postwar.htm>.

American women should be required to register for the draft. Simply because the men that are forced to fight on the frontlines can not do everything on their own. by women being forced to join the draft, all of the men that are not on the frontlines: cooks,intelligence,mechanics, and reserves can step up and join their fellow soldiers on the battlefield. Women do not have to learn how to shoot a gun. They can add to the cause by helping with the supplies. Plus, the women can aid in the first aid tents and hospitals in Vietnam. War is never just a man's war. It is an American war. All US citizens including women can contribute to the cause.

For as long as I could remember, I would always wear a wristband that my dad gave me when I was a little boy. It was blue, green, and had, "Papo" written in an aztec font on it. All my life I wore it and he would call me Papo. I remember that when he and my mom split apart I would play with it and wear it everywheres. I would feel extremely happy that I still had a connection with him through that inanimate object. That wristband was all I had left of my dad. I used to call my dad all the time. We would talk about the most random things. Up until middle school I would see my dad once a year and every time he would tell me, " I see you still wearing that dang ole wristband. I love you." Then he would give me a huge hug. As soon as highschool came, we drifted apart. The colors began to fade along with our relationship. Then one day, the wristband ripped straight down the middle. Now, I never associate myself with that man. I have not talked to or seen him since my eighth grade year. The wristband my dad gave me now rests in a time capsule I made at the beginning of my freshman year. Every now and then I open up that shoe box and just stare at it. My emotions spill out and I just cry. My fathers wristband means so much to me. And at times I wish they had a glue strong enough to fix more then just a rubber wristband.

The Inspiration of My Backyard

The perfume of the unknown flowers
Oaks as giant as the Twin Towers
Pelicans bathing in the humidity of the air
Something so special, only I could stare

Wheat, apples, Tangerines
Please, forget not the beans
Cats are straying dogs are barking
All because the chevys are parking

The scarlet red barn waits to say hi
The grass still growing, time to say bye
Whispers of the wind blowing through my hair
Something so special, only I could stare

The innocence of the blinding stars
Is shunned out by the passing cars
This is home, my precious emerald shard
This is home, my own back yard