[ladyjane]

While that may be true, very few Harvard men went to the front lines. Poor kids, black and white, were over represented. MacNamara's kid didn't interrupt his studies at Stanford.

[laconic]

Oh, I agree with you on that point, Ladyjane. McNamara's son actually had the nerve to lead antiwar demonstrations while his fool of an old man was Secretary of Defense and was chief in implementing an idiot's war strategy! While orchestrating this atrocity of a battle plan that was the direct cause of death of thousands of young Americans of his draft-deferred son's age, McNamara had the gall to allow his son's out of town antiwar buddies to headquarter and sleep in his home's basement during the demonstrations. After he left office, it is a well known fact that McNamara ran all over Georgetown cocktail parties arguing what a mistake the war had been so that he could be accepted back in cafe society. The fact that McNamara's lying and bootlicking worked shows in his continuing membership on the board of directors of The Washington Post and his service as a pallbearer at the recent funeral of that newspaper's imperious owner, Katherine Graham.

[metesky]

The president of my Haverhill High School senior class and captain of our football team dropped out of Harvard to go to Vietnam where, as a captain in the Marines he won a Silver Star and a Purple Heart among other medals and awards for valor.

He returned to Harvard to finish up and was an All-East defensive back on their football club.

I don't think he was alone in his endeavor. Check your premises.

Better yet, go over to Harvard some day and check out the memorial to all the Harvard men who have fought and died for the United States.

[bimbo]

While that may be true, very few Harvard men went to the front lines. Poor kids, black and white, were over represented.

That was true whe the draft was run by the Selective Service method – Draft Quotas were assigned to each district (VERY selectively) and the local Draft Board selected (again, VERY selectively) who was to serve, and who was deferred.

When the Draft was changed to the Lottery System by birthdate – and the sons of the elite were sometimes selected – the end of both the Vietnam War and the Draft were imminent.