I couldn't agree more, Old Soldier

You're right--it was wrong of me to exclude Democrats from the list of people who lied about the true nature of our involvement in Vietnam. President Johnson lied and escalted the war to an unprecedented level during his Administration (only Nixon bested him). It cost him his second full term in office. To the best of my knowledge, however, he did nothing in his official capacity (engaged the CIA or FBI) to spy on or intimidate U.S. citizens who did not agree with his administration's policies regarding the war. And I suppose that our involvement in that part of the world goes back to The Eisenhower Administration and how the world was carved up after WWII.

Don't get me wrong (my politics aside), I'm no great fan of Jane Fonda. Truth be told, I consider her to be one great big disappointment and a sell-out. In 1972, however, I think she acted rather courageously--obviously, I thought the war was wrong (and a sort of humorous aside--I saw a Texas man holding a placard during the 1988 presidential race at a Bush / Quayle rally which read: "What's the difference between Jane Fonda and Dan Quayle? Jane Fonda WENT to Vietnam."). That is not to say that she did not act stupidly. Who was perfect in those heated, controversial days? She should have never sat on that gun. She didn't think of the implications, and the photograph of her sitting there smiling is one of the most infamous photographs ever snapped. I can't know what she was thinking at the time. My guess is that she was trying to identify with the people with whom we were at war. Like you I would imagine, she saw a lot of suffering. The difference, however, is that she may have thought that it was the United States that was responsible for a large part of that suffering. It probably never occurred to her how much suffering she was causing. Should she be shot as a traitor for that? She was zealous, short-sighted, and more than a little ignorant and thoughtless, but I truly believe that her heart was in the right place. She wanted the war to end...the cost had already been too much.

I have read, more than once, the story about Col. Corrigan or Carrigan. A friend of mine, a Major in the Marine Corps, was the first to bring it to my attention. I did a little Web surfing and found on a Web Page not at all sympathetic to Jane Fonda, that stated the story was not true. I can see how stories can be manufactured and repeated to the point of believability. Some of her actions, the ones that can be confirmed, were deplorable. I have trouble, however, raising them to the level of treason--especially in light of the official misconduct of our elected official who never suffered any kind of punishment with regards to their actions. Many young men (my mother's only brother, Wayne Stevenson Greer being one), women and children died in Vietnam. Those who lied in an official capacity and kept fanning the flames of war should be held accountable for their truly immoral behavior. Until there is some accountability on that level, people like Jane Fonda, Ramsey Clark, Tom Hayden, Daniel Ellsberg, people who were trying to stop the killing and uncover the lies, should, as far as I'm concerned, be granted the benefit of the doubt as to their intentions.