“Shocked and sick” were the words that Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird used to describe his reaction when he first heard of the alleged massacre at Pinkville on March 16, 1968. He spoke for us all. We’re the good guys, and good guys just don’t do that kind of thing.
This kind of killing can in no way be excused or condoned, even though we may understand how the hell of war—and especially the kind of war being fought in Viet Nam—brings out the worst in men. We can remind ourselves that the enemy’s atrocities have been much worse, but somehow that doesn’t hide the appalling reality that American soldiers have been accused of gunning down helpless women and children. The facts must be brought out into the open. The offenders—if they can ever be accurately identified—must be brought to trial and punished, and every possible precaution should be taken to prevent a recurrence of such a horrible deed.
But even after punishment has been meted out, the fact remains: Americans acted like bad guys. It isn’t the first time that it’s happened, but the horror of this particular incident has confronted the whole nation with the fact that evil is not confined to the “commies” or the “fascists.” It lurks in the heart of every human being.
Pinkville will long remain a blot on the American conscience. But perhaps some good can be salvaged from it if we will allow it to remind us of the awful reality of sin in the human heart—sin that can be forgiven and subdued only through the person of Jesus Christ.
