Back in the Fight

Although there is no tally of how many Vietnam veterans have spent time in Iraq, there are probably barely a few thousand left in the active-duty military, according to Rick Weidman, director of government relations for the Vietnam Veterans of America. Many others serve in the National Guard and reserves.

Among the most striking differences between the two often-compared conflicts, according to those who have spent time both here and in Vietnam, is the fact that Iraq is under reconstruction while fighting still rages across much of the country. Another is the dearth of soldiers with experience in the 20th century's bloodiest wars.

"We used to have these World War II and Korea vets come around, and I would say, 'I am never going to be one of those old farts lecturing the kids about what it was like,' " said Holly, 59, a retired Marine colonel who did two frontline tours in Vietnam, the second with an elite Force Reconnaissance unit. "Now I figure one of the most valuable things I can do is mentoring."

Holly came to Iraq in 2003 as the director for all non-construction logistical operations, such as supplying beds and medical supplies to hospitals and turbines to electrical plants.

The task he and the others face in helping rebuild Iraq is daunting. Thousands of projects have been completed or are underway. But reconstruction has been hobbled by an insurgency that proved deadlier than expected and by miscalculation of the degree of degradation of Iraq's infrastructure from years of neglect and the widespread looting that followed the U.S. invasion. U.S. funds allocated to the rebuilding effort are slated to be spent by the end of the year. And pressure is mounting in the United States for a substantial reduction in U.S. forces here.

"I volunteered because I thought I could help prevent another Vietnam," Holly said. "After we pulled out of there, we stuck our heads in the sand like an ostrich, said it was a mistake and we should never have gone. We basically forgot about the place. That would be the worst-case scenario here."

Their feelings about the Vietnam War represent nearly all sides in the long and unresolved public argument about the conflict. Thomas said that when he got out of the war and, soon after, out of the Army, he realized that he "had no idea why we went there in the first place. It just didn't make sense."

Holly, who graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy's storied Class of 1968, which included James Webb, the former Navy secretary and a noted novelist, and retired Marine Lt. Col. Oliver L. North, said some of the best evidence that the United States had not lost was that Vietnamese citizens now embrace American culture. "You go to Vietnam and they love Americans there," he said. "I was amazed by that."

Among their most valuable contributions to the current war effort, the veterans here said, is offering guidance on the readjustment to civilian life that lies ahead for younger soldiers. An estimated one in six service members in Iraq is expected to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, a psychological condition widely diagnosed among Vietnam-era veterans. Although the casualty rate for U.S. forces in Iraq is far lower than that at the peak of the Vietnam War, the myriad threats soldiers face here -- including ever more deadly roadside bombs and suicide attacks -- make the conflicts' psychological impact comparable, the veterans said.

"You never know who the enemy is unless you've got an electronic scoreboard that's changing all the time," Weidman said. "The Vietnam guys can help keep things light when they're in the field. Out there, humor can keep you alive. And they can explain that it will not be easy to leave Iraq behind and go back."

Army Master Sgt. Danny Huffman, 59, knows firsthand that while fighting a war is hard, coming home can be as great a challenge. In 1968, he returned as an alcoholic to tiny Yukon, Okla., after a tour as an artillerymen in Vietnam. Before turning his life around, he lost jobs and eventually his marriage to his high school sweetheart.

"I'd tell the younger guys to get help a lot quicker than I did," said Huffman, who said support networks of veterans helped pull him out of his funk. A reservist, he is on his second stint in Iraq as a finance officer for reconstruction projects in Baghdad, a dawn-to-dusk job with no days off.

"When I get home next time," Huffman said, "the hardest thing to get used to will be the eight-hour workdays. Over here, we're always raring to go."