In June of 1968, recovering Vietnam Vet William Swoveland wrote a letter to then President Lyndon B. Johnson from his hospital bed in Japan, questioning the war–how and why the country was fighting it. Swoveland, now 71, and a resident of South Florida never received a response from the President (though he had sent him one), due to a failure in the military mail system.
Here’s a portion of the long-overdue response from LBJ
- “What have we gained from our global commitment that could possibly be worth the sacrifice of American lives? The answer to your question is not a simple or easily visible one.”Both parts of the correspondence can now be seen at his Presidential Library in Austin Texas. Interesting story of how the text of the letter finally got into Swoveland’s possession after 36 years is here.
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