Against Veterans' Groups

To the Editor of the CRIMSON:

After reading the VAM article printed in last Saturday's CRIMSON, I can not help but make a few comments on the subject.

At times I regret being a veteran when certain misled or fatuous citizens begin organizing groups like the Veterans Against MacArthur. It is appalling when a few ex-GI's and ex-swabbies claiming to represent veterans as a whole get together, make a few asinine remarks, and fool that they have enlightened the rest of the public. With hour exams at hand I feel certain that Mr. Kornfeld and crowd can find more constructive things to do than organizing groups devoted to such childish chatter.

I personally have long considered myself a citizen first and a veteran last. I fear that I fall to see the necessity for organizing political pressure groups supposedly representative of all veterans. I reserve the right to form my own political views and need no veterans' group to decide them for me.

I make no attempt to defend or criticize General MacArthur since I feel that neither I nor the VAM are qualified to do so. This letter is written primarily because I resent the obviously prejudiced remarks made by a group claiming to represent the opinions of all veterans. I have no objection to any individual or group of individuals expressing their political views, but I do object to the use of the term "veterans" in making their views known publicly. We have the AMVETS, AVC, VFW, veteran bars, veteran filling stations, veteran cabs, and now Veterans Against MacArthur. When will the Veterans Committee Against Veterans Committees be organized? Allen E. Kline '50