To Build! An Idea from Cid Corman's Nothing Doing:

When America

has made a black wall with all

the names of those of

the Vietnamese who died in

that war life will have grown up.

(p. 114, Nothing Doing, 1999, New Directions)

Comments

[Ed Bake]

the original statement comes from/came from the girl who designed the wall at some anniversary ceremony of it's building/or of the war/ and the sentiment was/is widely held / broadcast.. she (and others) said something like: "when all of the names of Viet Nam dead are put on the back, then it will be done" of course, the present memorial is not nearly large enough besides, not much has "America" learned from or since that , as the Viet Namese call it: The American War "we" are a nation of "very-slow-learners" thanks for the post