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Long ago,
when I was 19
and hot to trot –
three-sport, national
honor society,
“most likely to succeed”
high school grad
bored to death in
droning college classrooms –
I whirled off campus
one day in a fitful itch
of impatience
and joined the army.
In no time, I landed in Vietnam.
I was never bored again.
Thirty years later,
my kamikaze course
of education was capped
by tasseled cap and gown,
recipient of a degree
(summa cum laude)
for lessons learned
in Vietnamese villages,
West Point parades,
peace marches
and public debates
after I discovered the gumption
to say “No, sir!”
to a military career,
shucking that chic
killer combat gear
and joining civilians
building bridges
across
battle lines.
(From Earth Songs: New & Selected Poems)
Turning 20 in Vietnam, I learned
that waging war in Indochina
confounded can-do, go-go generals,
and ordinary soldiers were left
to figure out on their own
what the hell was going on.
Posted to West Point to become
a spit-shined, sword-saluting, conquering hero-in-training,
I searched for better ways
of spending my days.
So I discovered a subterranean
tradition of trading military
paraphernalia for a pen,
pioneered by former
cadets Edgar Allan Poe
and Carl Sandburg--
who each took measure
of the US Military Academy
and traded cadet gear
for another career.
And so I dropped
dressing up like Napoleon
to march off picayune demerits
and became a poet.
(From Life after War & Other Poems)
Enlisted U.S. Army, May 1962
(basic training, Ft. Jackson, SC; radio school, Ft. Benning, Georgia)
18th Aviation Co., Vietnam, December 1962-October 1963
(promoted to Private First Class, awarded Army Commendation Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal)
U.S. Military Academy Prep School, Ft. Belvoir, Virgina, October 1963-June 1964
U.S. Military Academy, West Point, NY, July 1964-November 1964
27th Inf., Ft. Rucker, Alabama, November 1964-May 1965
(promoted to Specialist 4th Class, awarded Good Conduct Medal)
Honorably discharged, May 1965
Member, advisory board,
Warrior Writers
Member, board of directors:
Teachers for Vietnam
Co-director,
"Leave No Soldier"
Veterans Day Town Meetings
Past member, board of directors, NJ Foundation for Open Government; Montclair chapter, United Nations Association
Cofounder, Montclair-Cherepovets Sister City Committee, 1990
Co-director, New Jersey-Volgograd Bridges for Peace citizen exchange program, 1986-87
Director, Essex County (NJ) Office on Peace, 1986-87
Public information officer, YWCA of the USA, 1981-87
Cofounder and past president, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, 1967-71
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Photo/Camillo Mac Bica
Reading at "Puffin Peace Jam: An Evening of Spoken Word and Music"
November 19, 2010
Puffin Cultural Forum, Teaneck NJ
(Governors Island, NY) First Annual New York Poetry Festival, Warrior Writers reading
(New York, NY) Poets House, "The Day After: Poetry by Veterans for Memorial Day and Every Day," Warrior Writers reading with Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans
(Piscataway, NJ) Rutgers University, presentation for 15th year at NJ Press Association/Rutgers Journalism Resources Institute workshop for journalists on reporting stories on municipal and school budgets
(New Brunswick, NJ) Rutgers University, "Tapping the Grassroots: Unofficial Sources - the News-making Role of Ordinary Citizens," talk as journalist in residence
(New York, NY) New York-New Jersey Trail Conference Annual Winter Meeting, Community Church of New York, presented workshop on open space advocacy
(Woodstock, NY) Kleinert/James Arts Center, Woodstock Poetry Society & Festival panel discussion with Brian Turner, Dayl Wise and Thomas Brinson, "The soldier-poet: why I write"
(Teaneck, NJ) Puffin Cultural Forum, reading at Costs of War cultural program
(Upper Nyack, NY) Fellowship of Reconciliation, "Poems for Peace from the World of War" poetry reading with veteran poets
(Boonton, NJ) Boonton High School, presentation at Vietnam era course
(New Brunswick, NJ) Rutgers University, presentations at Vietnam Legacy classes for more than 20 years
(Newark, NJ) Rutgers University Law School, panelist in seminar on New Jersey's Open Public Meeting Act sponsored by NJ Foundation for Open Government
(Washington, DC) Brookings Institution, presentation at "Winning Hearts and Shaping Minds: Public Diplomacy and International Education in an Age of Conflict" symposium
(Holmdel, NJ) NJ Vietnam Veterans' Memorial and Vietnam Era Educational Center, panel on "Weighing In On War: Public Opinion and Its Influences, Vietnam to Iraq"
(New York, NY) New School University, panel discussion on "Iraq and the Lessons of Vietnam," a new book edited by Lloyd C. Gardner and Marilyn B. Young
(Brooklyn, NY) Brooklyn Historical Society, panel discussion on Iraq and Vietnam wars
(New York, NY) Columbia University School of Journalism, guest speaker at news reporting class
(Burlington, VT) Environmental Journalism Boot Camp, Michigan State University's Knight Center for Environmental Journalism program at Society of Environmental Journalists conference, presentation on covering environmental issues as a municipal reporter
(Hoboken, NJ) Hoboken High School, panel discussion, "Leave No Soldier" Veterans Day Town Meeting
(Ithaca, NY) Unitarian Church, panel discussion, "Leave No Soldier" Veterans Day Town Meeting
(Portland, ME) Holiday Inn, Poetry reading with "Winning Hearts & Minds" and "DMZ" poets, Veterans For Peace convention
(Philadelpha, PA) Robin's Books, "When They Come Home," Warrior Writers reading with Iraq and Afghanistan veterans
(Highland Park, NJ) Marc's Place Coffeehouse, Reformed Church, poetry reading
(College Park, MD) University of Maryland, workshop on poetry for peace, Veterans For Peace convention
(Philadelphia, PA) Crane Arts Building, poetry reading at "Operation Rapid American Withdrawl" art exhibit
(Sparkill, NY) St. Thomas Aquinas College, presentation at "Literature & War" class
(Boston, MA) Boston Public Library, poetry reading
(New Brunswick, NJ) Rutgers University, poetry reading with Iraq veterans, students with Rutgers Against the War; remarks on Iraq veterans' Combat Paper Project at Brodsky Center for Innovative Editions Annual Exhibition at Mason Gross Galleries
(New York, NY) Dieu Donne artist workspace, poetry reading with Iraq veterans in Combat Paper Project
(New York, NY) Jews Uniting to End the War and Heal America conference, panelist on addressing veterans' issues
(Montclair, NJ) Presentation at fund-raisers for production of a documentary film, "Leave No Soldier," on ways war veterans cope with death and grief
(Smithfield, RI) Bryant University, panel discussion on "Leave No Soldier" documentary
(New York, NY) Pratt Institute, panel discussion on "Leave No Soldier" documentary
(Fort Worth, Texas) Investigative Reporters and Editors conference, panel presentation on "Toxic Legacy" project
(Paramus, NJ) Bergen Community College, panel discussion on "Toxic Legacy" project
(Mahwah, NJ) Ramapo College, presentation on "Toxic Legacy" project to environmental studies class
(Mahwah, NJ) Ramapo College, presentation on "Toxic Legacy" project at Ramapo River Watershed Conference
(New York, NY) New York University, presentation on "Toxic Legacy" project to investigative journalism class
(New Brunswick, NJ) Rutgers University, presentation on "Toxic Legacy" project to investigative journalism class
(Newark and Paterson, NJ) Presentation to New York University journalism students on bus tour of historic industrial areas in New Jersey
(Hackensack, NJ) Journalism program for Lakeland Regional High School class visiting The Record newsroom
(Wanaque, NJ) Wanaque Elementary School and Haskell Elementary School, Newspaper in Education program classroom visit
(Trenton, NJ) New Jersey Land Conservation Rally panel on "Communicating Your Message to the Press and Donors"
(New York, NY) Quad Cinema, Greenwich Village, panel discussion after showing of "Winter Soldier" film
(Princeton, NJ) Princeton Public Library, panel discussion after showing of "Winter Soldier" film
(Chicago, IL) Roosevelt University, panel discussion and poetry reading, Vietnam Veterans Against the War 40th anniversary celebration
(Boston, MA) Emerson College, panel discussion on veterans' literature, Veterans For Peace convention
(Brooklyn, NY) Long Island University, panel discussion on "Soldier-Poets of the Vietnam War" at Veterans of the Vietnam War: Vietnamese & American Perspectives conference
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