what a draft can do

we all remember the draft of vietnam. i wanted to be proactive and have some control of the rudder that would steer my ship. although vietnam was approaching its height with the b-52 raids of operation arc light and linebacker II, i decided to begin wearing the blue air force uniform on july 4th, 1971, at the USAF academy in colorado. little did i know that those b-52s would break the back of the viet cong in 1972, resulting in the final release of our POWs in 1973. after four years of a college education second to none, i received my BS in math and my commission as a 2nd LT in the regular air force. once i completed one year of intensive jet pilot training in two aircraft, becoming proficient in formation and aerobatics, i received my first active duty assignment in that same b-52 that brought the viet cong to the peace table. in nearly 10 years of active duty service, i flew that beast of a bomber as a copilot, crew commander, instructor and evaluator. i met my wife of 47 years early in those academy days, as she had also enlisted in 1971. our real hero is our son, who is still an 18-year, active-duty first sergeant (E-8) in the USMC. he has spent 3 years of his life in combat, in the sandbox of afghanistan. during his second tour of duty, he was blown up by an IED, sustaining combat wounds and TBI, being awarded the purple heart. we value these warriors of today.