This year I read Tim O'Brien’s "The Things They Carried," and when I walked into Judge James Ellis' chambers it didn't take me long to figure out this guy was in Vietnam. There was a gigantic American flag tacked to the wall and a framed tiger print hung above a bookcase. On the bookcase was a miniature "MIA" flag, the type of flag people wave with one hand at parades. He is sporting a boot-camp buzz-cut and is the right age.
He walks with a cane and limps across the room as we talk a bit about his tour of duty. He was a platoon leader in Vietnam and after six months was severely wounded. He looked off longingly as he talked about his service and trailed off as he said he planned to make a career out of it. I asked him if six months in action felt like six years and he said yeah we were all so young back then and thought we were invincible.
