SGT Arthur L. Markart 1st Cavalry 2nd BN 5th Cav Division (Airmobile) 6/70-4/71
SGT Arthur L. Markart 1st Cavalry 2nd BN 5th Cav Division (Airmobile) 6/70-4/71
"Those Americans who went to Vietnam fought for freedom, a truly noble cause. You and your comrades-in-arms who faced danger and death in Vietnam fought as well as any Americans in our nation's history.
Vietnam was not so much a war as it was one long battle in an ongoing war -the war in defense of freedom, which is still under assault. This battle was lost not by those brave American and South Vietnamese troops who were waging it but by political misjudgments and strategic failure at the highest levels of government.
The tragedy- indeed, the immorality-of those years was that for the first time in our history our country and its government failed to match the heroic sacrifice of our men in the field.
This must never happen again."
- Ronald Reagan
We are at war with the most dangerous enemy that has ever faced mankind in his long climb from the swamp to the stars, and it has been said if we lose that war, and in so doing lose this way of freedom of ours, history will record with the greatest astonishment that those who had the most to lose did the least to prevent its happening.
- Ronald Reagan, 1964
Elected US President in 1980, Reagan acted as honorary next-of-kin to the Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam War in ceremonies held at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC on Memorial Day, 1984. At the service, Reagan pledged his support to efforts aimed at finding those still listed as missing-in-action.
