DALLAS — Veterans of the Vietnam War are gathered in the hundreds this weekend at the Hilton Anatole north of downtown Dallas to reminisce, remember their fallen, and recall the successes of one of the top combat units in Vietnam. But Afghanistan, and its parallels, are not far from their thoughts either.
The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, "The Blackhorse Regiment," served with distinction in Vietnam from 1966 to 1972. The Dallas gathering is the 36th annual reunion and expected to be some 700 strong: the largest reunion of Vietnam veterans in the world who served in the same unit.
But as the regiment's official historian signed copies of his book 'Blackhorse Tales: stories of the 11th Armored Cavalry Troopers at War' he was also willing to talk about an old soldier's view of Afghanistan.
"The parallels are too obvious to ignore," the retired Lt. Colonel said. "It is difficult to watch, and I will use the expression intentionally, 'once again.' We have trained an army. We have attempted to establish a democratic government in another country and it's fallen apart."
"It's really sad to see that situation in Afghanistan right now," said veteran Allen Hathaway of Manassas, Virginia. "It does bring back memories about what happened in Saigon in 1975. It upsets me that we let this happen."
These veterans, gathered for their 36th annual reunion, didn't want to talk politics or blame. But behind a display of vintage equipment from 50 years ago, Dave Vargo of Abilene would talk about democratic experiments that seemingly do not work.
"And they said if you will ceasefire, we will stop," he said of the North Vietnamese in 1975. "And the Taliban said if you'll quit fighting, we'll quit fighting. And look what happened," said Vargo who maintains a collection of military equipment from all service branches.
This reunion of the Army 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment is intended as therapy for soldiers who often don't talk about their war experiences to anyone else.
"This gathering is very special to all of us," said Hathaway. "It allows them to open up to people who understand. And that's a very important thing to do. You can talk to somebody who's never been there and they just don't understand."
And Saturday night keynote speaker John Caldwell Jr. hopes these veterans will understand the message he plans to deliver.
"Your service in the Blackhorse, in combat in Vietnam, made a difference," he said.
While hoping he will be able to tell Afghanistan veterans the same thing.