Men, stress, and Vietnam

by Peter G. Bourne

Written by Bernie Weisz Historian & Book Reviewer Vietnam War Pembroke Pines, Florida May 19, 2008 e mail:BernWei1@aol.com Title of Review: "A psychiatrist's view of the Vietnam War" "Men, Stress, and Vietnam" by Peter Bourne is a fascinating book that records Bourne's personal experiences and impressions in South Vietnam from Oct. 1965 to Oct. 1966. Bourne, a psychiatrist, covers areas from his specialty to other branches of medicine, as well as anthropology and sociology. One center of my own concern when I review books about the Vietnam War is to try to find statements that point out our folly in being there in the first place. With Bourne's book, it popped out on page 1. Bourne compares our ill-fated involvement with a fable that Bourne writes: "Once upon a time a fish and a monkey were caught up in a great flood. The monkey, agile and experienced, had the good fortune to scramble up a tree in safety. As he looked down to the raging water he saw the fish struggling against the swif